The Crow

To Hell with Best Places to Work

 

 
I struggle with this. As the HR person, I like to have this badge of honor for my company. I feel like it says I did something right.  On the other hand, I have to admit that it is kind of bullshit. So many companies game it. And they should, because it is a marketing tool, thinly disguised as an opinion survey.

There are a ton of these lists out there. Best places to work in Indiana. Best places to work in academia. Fortune’s best places to work. Ugh. really? I’m going to start my own survey, charge all of you 300 bucks to participate, everyone can be a winner, I make a little money and you get the badge, “Crow’s Best Places to Work 2011” for your website.

I have a “friend” (we’ll call her Stacy, yeah, that’s the ticket), who’s company was thinking about doing this, and decided not to. They didn’t want to tell employees to say nice things just to help with the recruiting effort. They preferred instead to be honest, and honestly? Yeah, it’s a good place to work. Is it one of the best? Well, that all depends on who you’re comparing to. It’s all relative.

At first, I thought Stacy should push to do it, but the more I thought about it, I decided it’s actually pretty punk rock to refuse to do it. F*&^ those Best Places to Work game playing marketing types. HR anarchy. Contests? Badges? We don't need no stinking badges. 

When you are looking at companies, does it matter to you in your job search if they are listed as a best place to work? What does it say to you if they have that badge? What if they don’t? What if they had it 3 years ago and still have it on their site? Don’t you care more that the people aren’t jerks, the work is interesting, and that the pay and benefits are decent?

tracy c

Have Fun Goddammit!

 

 
Image and Inspiration from the Economist

Someone sent an article from the Economist to me at work today. It was called "Down With Fun; The Depressing Vogue for Having Fun at Work." 

He told me I should be our Chief Fun Officer...I hope he was being ironic but you know, I just started here and…it’s hard to know for sure.

The guy in the article goes off about how lame “forced fun” is. I tend to agree.  If you have to force it…it just isn’t happening. On the other hand, as much as I admire the Madmen recipe for a good time (smoking, drinking to get drunk, and office romance run amok), I am not really sure that’s the answer either. Mostly because I no longer look that great in a pencil skirt and clingy sweater and really, hardly anyone looks good in red lipstick.

Seriously...Do employees want someone in charge of ensuring they have a good time? Do you need a slide at work to feel engaged? Clowns, perhaps?

How can and should employers make work fun without forcing the issue? Snide commentary from the author of the anti-fun post aside, what do you think?

Article here: http://www.economist.com/node/17035923?story_id=17035923&CFID=148951675&CFTOKEN=66063146

tracy c

Does Your Employer Reward Your Addiction?

Mad Men makes it look so glamorous. The two-pack-a-day habit. The three-martini lunches. Throw in an extra-marital affair for the holy trinity of advertising addictions.

According to the legendary ad exec Jerry Della Femina, Mad Men was actually an understatement to the true 60’s ad lifestyle.  “We used to have an agency "sex" contest near the end of every year.” he admits in this USA Today article. “We'd go to a no-name Mexican restaurant… and we'd drink giant margaritas all day. It was an idea I had when I realized our people were spending too much time talking and thinking about sex, and not working it.”

Fast forward a few decades – and enough DUIs, divorces and lung cancer death to scare a new generation of ad folks straight: advertising lifestyle doesn’t look the same as it used to.  But there is one addiction that prevails:

“Hello my name is Bill W. and I’m a Work Addict.”

Unlike other addictions - which employers are quick to offer Employee Assistance Programs for - the Workaholics list of symptoms reads like an atta-boy list for your next promotion:

• Do you take work with you to bed? On weekends? On vacation?
• Do you work more than 40 hours a week?
• Do you believe that it is okay to work long hours if you love what you are doing?
• Do you get impatient with people who have other priorities besides work?
• Do you think about your work while driving, falling asleep or when others are talking?
• Do you work or read during meals?                                                                                                                     

Has fear, mobile tether devices, and a down economy – particularly in markets like Detroit – turned us all into workaholic zombies?  Rationalizing 80-hour work-weeks, insane travel schedules and less time with family with the relief of: at-least-I-have a-job-in-this-economy? Will we look back in 30 years and reminisce in disbelief – like the way we look back at the smoking, sex and drinking habits of yesteryear – “I can’t believe we worked that way back then.” Or, is today’s work addiction only the beginning of our new world-is-flat, competitive economy? 

As employers and managers, we need to be careful not to reward employees for work addiction behavior. We can do more to help employees recognize if they might be candidates for burnout. Here are some ways to encourage work-life balance – even during tight times:

• Make a habit of reminding employees when they have un-used vacation – and to actually use it. Organic’s HR department sends out quarterly reminders to our staff – encouraging employees to take their time off.
• If an employee is brave enough to wave the white flag – and admit they’re overworked, help find the resources to divide their workload.
•  Offer concierge or personal services to help employees feel balance and me-time. Organic offers monthly massage services in the offices. Other employers offer dry cleaning, errand pick-ups, on-site child care or even doggie day care services.
• Include extended family for work outings. It allows them to meet the people employees are spending so much time away from home with – and makes them feel a part of things. At Organic holiday functions, our leadership makes a point of thanking spouses for their understanding during particularly busy periods.
•  Allow flexibility with work-from-home days or occasionally bringing kids to the office.
• As bosses – when our employees are on vacation – step away from the email or phone. Is the latest crisis really vacation-interruption worthy?  While we should take our client’s work seriously, we should remind ourselves “It’s not a heart in a cooler.” It’s advertising for crying-out-loud.

When P&L’s get snug and clients get demanding, its easy for us – as employers – to push our staff to their limit and perhaps take for granted those that might be workaholic inclined.  As employers, we can look back at the insanity of the 60’s to remind ourselves the importance of balance. Even Don Draper took the occasional vacation.

The author, Traci Armstrong, won’t admit the irony of completing this article during a bout of insomnia in the wee hours of the morning. At least she wasn’t smoking or sipping bourbon during the time of this writing…

Hip Matters

Looking for the right interactive agency job? I have two words for you: Hip Matters. Things like company blogs, weekly cocktails and high-concept retreats are much more than fun perks; they’re important markers of an interactive agency’s culture—and they can tell you a lot about whether a job will position you for professional excellence or leave you stalled in a bad workplace sitcom.

So along with questions like what cool accounts you’ll get to work on and whether the health plan covers IVF or acupuncture, there are five areas of a prospective employer’s culture you should make sure to explore before signing on the dotted line.

Cultural Immersion
There’s more to success than design principles, computer skills and copywriting chops. To do your best work, you need full immersion into your new work culture: how things get done, how people collaborate and the core philosophies that tie it all together. How will your new agency bring you up to speed?

For example, at Organic, we want our employees to understand how our agency creates empathy with consumers, gets into their hearts and minds, and speaks to their needs. So we invite about 30 employees each quarter to Camp Organic, a combination workshop/competition/adventure that puts our employees on the streets of Las Vegas to examine Consumerus Americanus in its natural habitat, then develop campaigns for a fictitious product based on their findings.

Back at the office, our All Hands internal blog helps people understand what’s going on at the agency and why it matters, from the tools we’re using to the fun we’re having.

Professional Development
Smart agencies work to make their employees smarter. Will your new job help establish you not only as an agency staffer, but also as a communications industry expert? Education is a big part of this, of course—not just the software classes you can get anywhere, but also more strategic sessions that prepare you for the next step in your career.

Another approach: Organic’s Three Minds blog reaches an audience far beyond our company, giving our employees the opportunity to develop and showcase their insight into the broader culture within which we operate, from the evolution of the game show to the YouTube-ization of presidential politics.

Life-Work Balance
Okay, sure. Back in the dot-com days, you got the impression that some companies spent more time playing foosball than focusing on the business at hand (and we saw how well that worked out). But there’s still a lot to be said for an agency that sees you as a complete human being.

Little touches like pet insurance, dry cleaning, massage and even on-site nail care can keep your stress level low so your creativity stays high. And don’t take standard options like weekly cocktails and bagel breakfasts for granted, either. You never miss them until they’re gone—and then you miss them a lot.

Internal Networking
At some firms, an org chart box can feel like a steel cage. It’s a lot more rewarding—and productive—when you can easily build relationships and collaborate throughout the company. This kind of cross-pollination can take place both physically, in an environment with plenty of casual meeting areas rather than fishbowl conference rooms, and virtually. “Organism,” our internal social wiki, lets our employees create digital personal spaces where they can share their work and workplace experiences, express ideas and interests, explore and grow across disciplines, and brainstorm with their colleagues. It raises their profile at the agency, it makes them more effective at their jobs and it builds the kind of communities that great campaigns come from.

Values
That’s right—contrary to popular opinion, we agency types do have values. Does your prospective employer give you a chance to act on yours? The moral benefits of green offices, social awareness programs, pro bono projects and a commitment to corporate responsibility can be just as important as 401(k) matching and bring-your-dog-to-work privileges. Being proud of the organization you work for beats wearing a Bad Guys Inc. pass card any day.

Is this all adding up to a lot to ask for? It should. Your job hunt is a rare opportunity to make fundamental changes in your work life. And if the hippest places to work are also the most professionally fulfilling—why waste your career anywhere else?

tracy c

(This article ran in Talent Zoo in September, 2007 under the headline, "Job Seekers Insist on Hipness)