Updates from April, 2013

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  Jim 9:55 am on April 17, 2013 Permalink  

  The Joy Factor 

  “Nothing great was ever achieved without enthusiasm.”
  –Ralph Waldo Emerson

  Whether operating a global corporation or a 3-person startup, managers constantly seek ways to measure employee performance and productivity. Some are quantitative (billable hours), some are qualitative (“Gwen’s a good collaborator.”). All have merit, but there is one seldom-tracked metric that is arguably the core cultural value of every successful organization: Joy.

  Quite simply, how joyous are we at our work? Do we bring energy, passion and optimism to the job every day? Is enthusiasm at the center of all we do?

  

  Joy should not be confused with pasted-on smiles or ritualized rah-rah. Steve Jobs was famously moody, mercurial and difficult. But beneath his complexity was the intense joy he took in creating  “insanely great” products that propelled Apple from near-collapse to stunning success.

  Joy is the tingling sensation that accompanies the quest for excellence. Or, as Helen Keller described it, “the faith that leads to achievement.”

  There is a story about a 12^th century Parisian laborer, one of an army of workers with crude shovels that excavated the hard, rocky ground from which Notre Dame would rise. He would begin each day of backbreaking labor with the joyful declaration, “My friends, we are not digging a ditch. We are building a cathedral!”

  Whether you’re building a cathedral or software company, don’t underestimate the power of the Joy Factor.
   
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  Cole 9:15 am on October 15, 2012 Permalink  

  Twitter Is Changing The Game in Sports 

  In a recent Q&A with the Sports Business Daily, Bob Ryan—who recently retired after 44 years as a journalist with the Boston Globe-lamented, “The Twitter world has perverted any concept of perspective.”

  Them’s some heavy words, Bob. The concept of perspective is still out there. Very much so. It’s just that sports fans aren’t gaining perspective via 950 words on page 1C the next morning anymore. Instead, they are getting it in 140 characters within 90 seconds of whatever is said, done, shot, scored. Their sources are from everyone and everywhere. And, in many cases, they are giving perspective, too. The fact is you don’t need to be a columnist to be a taste-maker anymore. Not in a world of retweets.

  Twitter is also changing the way teams market themselves. The Seattle Mariners (our client), now run a brand radio tag urging fans to follow them on Twitter, Facebook, Pinterest and Google+. That’s real estate teams have long reserved for moving tickets and spotlighting promotions and events.

  The Brooklyn Nets are set to open their new arena this fall. One of the final touches? Painting the org’s Twitter handle on the court.

  It’s not only shaping the way big plays are viewed, but big business issues, too.  The NHL and the NHLPA are learning quickly that Twitter—which wasn’t around during the last work stoppage in 2004—is going to play a large role in how the deals and sentiments surrounding the current lockout are communicated.

  Twitter’s CEO, Dick Costolo, knows the value of the sports audience to his product. When asked who he would most want to get on Twitter, he said Tom Brady.

  Sports remains one of the few things we consume almost wholly in real-time. Which means its exposure and coverage will continue to evolve and play out in real time. Which is why Twitter has become a perfect companion for the sports experience.
   
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  Jim 8:58 pm on August 23, 2011 Permalink  

  Is this agency hot, or is it just me? 

  It’s been one of the coolest summers on record here in Seattle. But inside our agency, the heat is cranked up. We’ve had a flurry of new business activity, with the acquisition of three great new clients.

  World Vision is a worldwide Christian relief and development organization that helps people around the world to overcome disaster, poverty, illness and abuse. We are honored to be a World Vision marketing partner—charged with helping to raise awareness and funds.

  Seattle’s Convention and Visitors Bureau will oversee the creation of the new Seattle Tourism Improvement Area. The STIA will create a marketing fund through a hotel room surcharge with the goal of boosting leisure travel to our city. Great product, great people!

  Blue Nile is a highly successful online jewelry retailer. We’ve been assigned a brand enhancement project we’re very much looking forward to.

  We’re a very lucky agency: In a challenging economy, we’re growing our current accounts and attracting new ones. We’ve got a great staff. And future prospects are bright. (Excuse me for a moment while I knock on wood.)

  By the way, we’re looking for an experienced Account Supervisor and a highly capable Production Manger. Check out the job descriptions:

  Account Supervisor (PDF), Production Manager (PDF)

  If you have any recommendations, please send them our way. Provided they don’t mind the heat.
   
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  Jim 4:17 pm on July 6, 2011 Permalink  

  Abe Lincoln, CEO 

  

  If you read one management text this year, I’d suggest a history book: Team of Rivals by Doris Kearns Goodwin. It’s a compelling biography of Abraham Lincoln focusing on the management of his cabinet during the Civil War years. Goodwin’s book takes us deep inside Lincoln’s challenges and triumphs.

  He was nominated at the Republican national convention in 1860 as a compromise candidate. His better-known and better-financed opponents—Seward, Chase and Bates—cancelled one another out. Lincoln rose from relative obscurity to the presidency during the most perilous time in America’s history.

  Over the next four years, he performed brilliantly as the nation’s CEO.

  As president-elect, he convinced his Republican rivals to join his cabinet. Each felt himself superior to the humble and self-effacing Lincoln—and each accepted his appointment with the certainty that he would act as the de facto president. But over time, all were won over by Lincoln’s intellect, political acumen and compassionate nature. Now, nearly 150 years later, Lincoln’s legacy provides valuable lessons in management training:

  Hire well, set goals, avoid micro management
  Lincoln surrounded himself with powerful, accomplished and self-confident personalities. He set the course for his administration, but delegated broad powers to his appointees.

  Credit others for success, assume responsibility for failure.
  Lincoln was quick to applaud others when things went well on the battlefield or in government. But he stood alone in accepting responsibility for setbacks.

  Be firm in mission, flexible in strategy.
  Lincoln’s mission was to preserve the union. He entered the White House willing to support slavery if it meant keeping the nation intact. However, he grew to see slavery as a political impossibility and a moral wrong. He shifted his strategy in service to his ultimate goal.

  Use the power of language to lead and inspire.
  Lincoln was one of the great literary presidents. He framed arguments in simple but elegant prose that still speaks to “our better angels.”

  Malice toward none, charity to all.
  Perhaps the most remarkable thing about Lincoln was his refusal to harbor ill will toward others, regardless of how deeply they hurt or betrayed him.

  Humor as a management tool.
  Lincoln loved storytelling and jokes, using them as a way to defuse conflict and lift spirits. His humor was homespun, self-deprecating and an effective way to communicate larger truths.

  Step aside Jack Welch and Steve Jobs. Abraham Lincoln was undoubtedly the greatest CEO in American history.