Rockabilly Weekend and Vanity Plates

It’s Saturday. It’s beautiful outside and we’re going to hit the car show at Viva Las Vegas Rockabilly Weekend today. So we’ll see lots of cars from around the country and many will have vanity license plates. (Not to mention all the vanities that abound – this is Las Vegas)

So this morning, I saw this piece about a woman in New Jersey whose request for a vanity plate was rejected because it was for the word 8THEIST.

She is suing the state of New Jersey.

New Jersey: please take that money you’re spending on defending the decision to deny the plate and fix some roads, for cripes sakes.

A person who buys a vanity plate often also states his or her opinion/conviction/support of oh, their senator or president; their sexual orientation/marriage; for/against guns, abortion; organic food, zumba fitness; university/pro sports team; love of cats/dogs/ferrets; and free speech – on their car.

Cost of entry to add those messages is really cheap.

What I find odd is – that while one can spend almost nothing to paste their personal messages all over their car, and that they are willing to pay a premium to make that message [semi] permanent on their car – the government of any given state wants to decide that it is inappropriate to say it on a license plate, and they don’t want that extra money paid (usually every year unless you live in Oregon and licensing a car cost almost nothing), even though their state legislature decided that vanity plates would be an awesome way to make extra cash to repair (uh-um) all the roads.

I understand keeping all the bad words off plates. People don’t usually write f*ck you in the dirt on the back window of their mini-van. If they’re not willing to make that statement in dirt, then they shouldn’t get it on a plate. Besides, it’s rude. There’s enough rudeness on the road.

But this is a Freedom of Speech issue.

I live in Nevada. Home of Ranchers, Gambling, Legal Brothels (outside of two counties), millions of acres of Beautiful Desert, Sunshine 360 days a year, and Bars that are open 24 / 7. I’ve seen first-hand how the First Amendment is handled on a license plate.*

Another thing we have in Nevada – an awesome Rockabilly Weekend – that, I hear, will now be twice a year.

So, be free and have a great weekend. I can’t wait to see cool rides and hear Los Straitjackets.

Oh, and one last thought. If that plate you want is already taken, please don’t try so hard to make it work with numbers and such. It makes me crazy trying to figure out what your plate says.

Really. Boring. Stuff. But Agency Life Will Be Better.

I’ve been reading about Kanban (as it relates to software development) and The Theory of Constraints.

It’s really super-boring when you read this stuff and apply it to an advertising agency. But there are a few nuggets in there.

In my line of work, I’m all about Process, Tools and People.

A.     Process – how you get stuff done, start-to-finish
B.     Tools – what you use to do your stuff, communicate about your stuff, and store your stuff
C.   People – the people who do the stuff and their willingness to do A, and use B

It’ll all come together. And by the way, I don’t like to use jargon unless I’m looking to confuse my audience. (yes I know you’re all highly intelligent folks, but Orwell said it best:  “Never use a foreign phrase, a scientific word, or a jargon word if you can think of an everyday English equivalent.” My everyday word is stuff.

So The Theory of Constraints, as identified in Wikipedia (my go to source for all things about organizational management) goes like this:

The theory of constraints (TOC) is a management paradigm that views any manageable system as being limited in achieving more of its goals by a very small number of constraints. There is always at least one constraint, and TOC uses a focusing process to identify the constraint and restructure the rest of the organization around it.

TOC adopts the common idiom "a chain is no stronger than its weakest link." This means that processes, organizations, etc., are vulnerable because the weakest person or part can always damage or break them or at least adversely affect the outcome.

It goes on…

Types of (internal) constraints

• Equipment: The way equipment is currently used limits the ability of the system to produce more salable goods/services.
• People: Lack of skilled people limits the system. Mental models held by people can cause behaviour that becomes a constraint.
• Policy: A written or unwritten policy prevents the system from making more.

So I could repackage these three constraints as:

A.     Tools – inadequate, redundant, time-consuming
B.     People – unskilled, unmotivated, crappy attitude
C.   Policy – the notion that you are maxed-out and have to say no, or worse, you outsource because A and B were not addressed (aka process – you actually think you have one – but you don’t actually follow it)

Now as for Kanban (as it relates to software development – which is kind of like the process in advertising) – is all about efficient process and improvement. In other words, one that is free of the baggage and crap we load onto a project (or anything for that matter) – which could be an attitude or too many bells and whistles for that website you’ve been trying to get done…for months.

The Kanban method is rooted in four basic principles:

• Start with what you do now
• Agree to pursue incremental, evolutionary change
• Respect the current process, roles, responsibilities and titles
• Leadership at all levels

Now, I’ll repackage Kanban as:

A.     Don’t re-invent the wheel – there’s actually a nugget of process in there. You start a project; it goes through your machine and comes out the other end, finished. Your process is probably messy – it just needs tweaking
B.     Get along, make it better and don’t be an asshole about it. You can actually work with others to improve life at the agency (and it doesn’t require dogs in the office or Beer Fridays), and realize it takes a little time and a bit of input
C.     Respect the things that work, don’t cross into another’s territory, and be honest with one another for cripes sakes
D.    Own the project, the process and give credit. There are huge benefits, like making more money and not hating coming to work every day

So, before you fall asleep I’ll wrap this up into a neat little package. Take a look at the issues in your agency or marketing department (your constraints). What’s driving everyone nuts? What's too cumbersome and taking too much time? Who's not pulling their weight, or worse, being a jerk?

Start practicing a little Kanban and get things done without so much grief.

Yep, that’s a start. Need help? Give me a call (702-370-7447). The first one’s free. I’ll do a little Kanban magic and figure out what constraints are ailing ya.

A couple parting items:
Here’s a lovely link to Orwell’s 5 rules for effective writing
Here’s a link to Orwell’s Politics and the English Language. Read it.

West Coast Leg Of The Agency Salvation World Tour Is Done!

Just finishing up my West Coast Leg of the Agency Salvation World Tour, and met with some lovely folks who just want to get their agencies (and marketing departments) in order; get projects done on time and on budget; and get just a little compliance in the vicinity of timesheets.

What I learned:

• Every agency/marketing department tries switching around things to make the agency better.
• Moving people around physically so they engage with people they normally don’t talk to – whether that’s avoidance because they’re jerks or they get comfy with the same people.
• Reorganizing the reporting structure and assigning new titles – I find this like the proverbial re-arranging of the deck chairs, and often with a similar outcome. Like I’ve said a million times: if you want to know how to make things better, ask the people doing the work. Management comes up with these lame ideas to shake things up and it’s a waste of time. Ask your employees.
• There’s awesome creative coming from in-house marketing departments. Their creatives are legit.
• Catalogs (and other print mediums) are not dead. What’s this trend I’ve been reading about with online news organizations and retailers going to print? Hmmmm.
• Everything you’re experiencing is not unique. So if you have a question and need some help, 100 percent chance I’ve seen it or experienced it personally. I can help.

So, I’m planning another tour the end of summer. Looks like Midwest and/or South. What’s going on in your agency? Need someone to come in and point out . . . the obvious? Or perhaps a chat about that open space concept you’re thinking about?

There are a few other things I learned along this Tour:

• Act normal during an earthquake in Southern California. (I had to go on Twitter to confirm my suspicions).
• The Pacific Northwest is usually torrentially rainy, yet I had warm(ish) sunny days in Portland AND Seattle!
• Awesome customer service comes in the form of Les Scwab Tires. Thank you for fixing my flat tire (south of Olympia) FOR FREE. I’m patiently waiting for them to finally come to Las Vegas.
• Portland’s streets have become smaller – and there is tons more traffic. Beaverton? Yikes! A parking lot!
• Never, ever flash anyone. He/She may become your boss one day.

Send me your suggestions for stops on my next Tour!

Absentee Management

This is about how your employees, staff, workers, come in every day, do their jobs, and save your business because you rarely, or don’t show up for work – or if you do, you only hang out in your office and drift in/drift out without so much as a hello or goodbye. (Not to mention you’re barely taking the pulse of your business).

You, business owner, are a complete jerk. Thankfully, you have people around who care more than you.

You. Do. Not. Deserve. Them.

Last night I watched an episode of The Profit, Amazing Grapes, about turning around a wine store/bar.

I could say, well I’m traveling and I watch reality TV when I have nothing else to do in the evening. Actually this reality show is worth watching. This guy looks at the bottom line and listens to the staff. I like that.

Absentee management abounds not only in this episode, but in others I’ve watched. Sad commentary on the state of small business.

But it happens in big companies too. Managers not showing up for work, much less meeting with their direct-reports on a regular basis creates stress (employees need decision-makers sometimes), creates animosity/fear, and is just plain is heinous.

But back to Amazing Grapes. Awesome, experienced and caring staff kept that place going. Marcus Limonis (aka The Profit), came in at the request of the [absentee] owner. He talked to the staff and got an earful. They care, and are treated like crap. Yet they keep working…for the owner.

For an exchange of $300-grand and 51% ownership, Limonis not only put hard cash into the business in the form of a major remodel, but made the staff owners. Twenty-five percent.

The other thing Limonis did was (in exchange for cash), was reduce the absentee owners’ shares to 24 percent. The people doing the work had the leverage to make decisions that made sense – because they understood the business.

In my line of business – working with agencies and marketing departments to work better, smarter – I see it every day. Creatives, Account, Production, Planning, name your department – are the ones making sure work gets done every day.

And every day, there is a CEO, Partner, VP, Director, Manager – who is absent. Then miraculously, one day they show up and f*ck things up.

Why? Because they don’t know what’s going on in their business.

So, when I enter an agency or marketing department, the first thing I do is talk to the people doing the work. If they’re not fearful (that’s for another post), they’ll not only tell me what they do every day, and they'll show pride in their work; but they’ll tell me about all the roadblocks along the way, how they work around them, and about all the wasted time spent (ALL NON-BILLABLE) because their manager is absent.

Not every employee gets the opportunity to own 25 percent of the business. I always tell everyone that they all own the business.

Too bad management doesn’t get that.

Now, Mr./Ms. owner, VP, CEO, Partner, go and thank your employees for keeping you in a Beamer.

And just show up for work regularly and talk to your team. They're awesome.

Complacency

I’ve been seeing a lot about Apple and their agency TBWA. In this piece, correspondence between Apple’s SVP of Marketing, Phil Schiller, and [only noted as] ‘the agency’. This all comes to light due to documents in the Apple v Samsung patent case.

A few more things come to light.

The message from the agency was in response to a request from Apple to address the attention Samsung’s ad campaigns were garnering.

The message was pure ad agency. Embarrassing. They wanted more money and freedom to develop lots of new content then Apple can choose what they like (pay to explore without a plan). They wanted more meetings. Unnecessary, unproductive and expensive.

Brilliant. It’s a good thing that Schiller is smart and can see a con in a poorly worded email. I can’t even imagine how anyone would think that response was okay.

Oh, yeah. Complacency.

Schiller’s response was shocking. Well, he used shocking in some form four times in the four paragraph response. But he was shocked. The agency’s response was lame.

My favorite part:

“we actually have 2 pretty huge brand-level ideas right now that we love and yet can’t find a way to talk about in marcom, without just simply going out and making them. it’s more like a nike model where they shoot a bunch of stuff and then pick which to run from finished work.”

They actually have 2 pretty huge ideas? They can’t find a way to talk about it without making them? They’re modeling nike?

Did this person start in advertising last week? (By the way, the lack of capitalization didn’t go unnoticed in the article.)

So what I see here is a major, huge, big holding-company agency with the depth of the Platte.

Complacency can happen in any agency (or marketing department), in any role – from planning to creative – to the point that only a shake-up will get attention.

We don’t know what happened next, but it’s clear that Apple wanted more than regurgitated ideas and to write a blank check to develop content they may or may not use – not to mention more meetings.

What we can see is that even the big guys can have their lame, lazy moments.

It’s hard to get to the top of the heap. It’s harder to stay there.

As I’ve said many times: if something needs change and you don’t act, it will be done for you – and you won’t like the outcome.

The Hostile Work Environment

With the recent release of Anita, the documentary about Anita Hill and the hearings to confirm Clarence Thomas to the Supreme Court, I’m reminded of the importance of vigilance in our workplace.

We are all responsible for that vigilance.

Anita’s case was clearly sexual harassment; it’s defined under Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964.

It was sexual harassment, it was discrimination, and it was a Hostile Work Environment.

I’ve experienced this kind of discrimination personally. I’ve left jobs (without another to go to) because of a complete asshole who wouldn’t leave me alone; and I stayed in a job (albeit for a short time) after I reported it.

It’s what happens when you report it that's a game-changer – and that’s where the proof of a company’s culture (and their commitment to follow the law) really shows.

Harassment comes in many forms. The notion of a superior asking another out for a date and retaliating when rebuffed is an easy one to figure out.

But there are so many other subtle and not-so-subtle ways to be the unfortunate recipient of offending behavior.

From offensive language, to an outright demand for quid pro quo, the range is large (however identifiable). Women as well as men can offend. And the bottom line, I’ve heard many times is this: would you talk to, or treat your mother or sister; or father or brother that way?

In other words, would you treat your closest family member like something that can be used-up, publicly humiliated, or required to perform what others would never find acceptable?

Are you uncomfortable?

We use The Reasonable Person Standard. How would the average person react or respond to the actions of another in your typical workplace? What is the acceptable norm?

If it feels wrong, if you are humiliated, if others around you can see what’s happening and feel uncomfortable, perhaps there’s an issue that needs to be addressed.

It’s really scary to go to your HR department and tell them that your boss or colleague is doing something that you find offensive and won’t quit, doesn’t take a hint; or worse, thinks that their behavior is actually quite acceptable.

For most of us, the daily routine is just that. But when there is an individual who (there’s a range here): makes you wince when they make a comment, to all-out flagrant violation of their employee’s rights (or colleagues for that matter), then you have a serious issue that must be addressed.

Every company in this U. S. of A. is required by law to not only abide by, but educate their employees and enforce the laws that protect them.

Most of us who join a company are at the very least, given a handbook or view a video on rules of the company, anti-discrimination policies, and required to sign a form that we have read, understood and will comply with those laws.

That is where the “known or should have known” standard (superior or commander responsibility) comes into play.

Every company must have policies (and that education I just mentioned) in place so that if you witness discrimination, or even think you have witnessed discrimination, you must report it, and that you know how to report it – without fear of retaliation.

Maintain a zero-tolerance policy. If it feels wrong, it usually is wrong. Even in the advertising or marketing environment, where we are challenged to be ‘creative’, there are limits.

Speak out when you’re uncomfortable or are a witness to something that is just plain wrong.

If they fire you for pointing out the obvious, they’re not worth working for. They don’t deserve you.

And a little reminder, if you don’t speak up, you are a party to the problem.

I leave you with a quote:

Our lives begin to end the day we become silent about things that matter.
Martin Luther King, Jr.