In 2016 Michael Beirut launched his new book How To. Check out this exclusive interview capturing book details and career tips. Robin: “There were a couple things that really stood out to me when I read How To. I loved hearing about the pile of notebooks, a career...
When is it ok to say Uncle? When you've tried something for 1 year, 5 years, 10 years. So what’s the difference between giving up and moving on with a purpose? I’ve never been one to give up so I’m always shocked at how often I see others throw their hands up in the...
by Erica Flores and Nathalie Heywood More and more, the question comes up, “Should I get a permanent position or should I freelance?” The answer depends on what is your ultimate goal. Being a freelancer is much like running your own business. You will need to feel...
In the recently launched book, Leadership Vol. Two, From the Trenches, I had the opportunity to speak with a few seasoned leaders to gain perspective on in-house management challenges. I see and hear time-and-time again how frustrated managers lead teams that severely...
For many creatives and marketing teams, the creative brief has been the end-all, be-all of the project launch process for a long time. But according to the Content Marketing Institute, today's industry demands 76% more content than before—and the traditional creative...
We've all heard the old saying that it's “not what you know, but who you know” when it comes to getting a new job. Look, lets be honest with ourselves for a moment shall we? We’re all talented, creative, and experienced to one degree or another. And we have great...
Most creatives have found themselves stuck in a creative rut at some point or another. For starters, in-house creative teams have to keep up with more work than ever before. According to the 2016 In-House Creative Services Industry Report, nearly half of the in-house...
Employee evaluations are no easy task for busy managers, are they? Well, here’s how to simplify this process and come out with great results. A seasoned manager meets with their staff on a one-on- one basis weekly or bi-weekly to review how they are doing on top-tier...
Having built out many teams over the years I do notice that with experience certain things do come easier and quicker and certain tasks do not. What I know for sure is this: You can not spend enough time training and communicating at the beginning of the process....
You’ve likely seen the meme below on LinkedIn and thought to yourself “Yes, this is so true. But what can I do about it. I don’t have a budget for training and development”. Or maybe you see that meme and think about yourself and wish your boss could break with a...
Interviewing can be a chore for many hiring managers. Usually it’s because the vetting process hasn’t given you concrete information, and hasn’t properly prepared you to meet a candidate. In addition, the candidate has been asked the same set of questions over and...
Early influences I am one of those lucky people who knew early on what I wanted to do when I grew up, and my parents always encouraged me to develop my talent. Growing up in a family full of business professionals I was encouraged to “do more art” rather than...
We’re more than just designers, we’re influencers and visionaries who have the ability to make a positive impact in the world through our work. That’s why every year I make it a point to take on at least one pro bono client that we can assist with design and...
If your college grad came to you and asked, “Dad can I have $250 dollars?” would you say no before she could even finish her sentence? Now, if the same kid went to her Dad and said: “I would like to join an organization of my peers so I can learn X, for $250. Don’t...
Presenting is not easy. Getting to the point quickly is key. Keep it simple: beginning, middle and end.
As leaders, we must follow our gut instincts because when we don’t, it certainly comes back to bite us.
After searching and searching for weeks for a global image to depict a particular industry to align with our new brand, we were still coming up with nothing that would stick.
From interns to your most experienced team members, everybody can use coaching no matter what their discipline. If you have pride in your work, as most people do, improvement is a career-long pursuit. As a team member of various in-house agencies over the years, I...
When partnering, there are challenges you are inevitably going to face both internally and externally.
Just as bad as the creative person who always says “no” or “not possible,” is the creative who always says “yes” to even the most unreasonable or impossible request. Pull a rabbit out of your hat too often, or even when it’s not really needed, and you will have trained your account team to give little thought as to what is a decent amount of time for a job to be done and done well.
You built a great team, they are producing amazing results, the work and the people get accolades from everyone in the organization…now what?!
Training and challenging ourselves with new technologies and new projects (within our position if possible, but also outside and on our own time) The more the industry changes, the more you must adapt Like other industries, our industry is constantly changing. That’s...
What can we learn from each other? And how can we better support each other? As long as a distinction is made between “in-house” and “external” agencies, people will always ask: How can the two groups peacefully co-exist? It’s more accurate, and more productive to...
You lead or work as a member of an in-house creative team. Business is good. You definitely see the need for help in the near future. So, what do you do next?