A Loft(y) Perspective
As I near the end of my month long participation in the lofts program here at the Havas Manchester office, the time has come to officially reflect on the overall experience, and assess what I will be taking back with me to my day- to-day role in New York.
The great thing about the Havas Lofts program is that by design, the program takes individuals out of their crazy busy daily routines, and forces them to focus on immersing themselves in an entirely new culture and working environment, and learning as much as possible.
Because of this, I have not only been actively absorbing as much as possible, BUT I have also been reflecting on this along the way. As I was essentially removed from the craziness in New York — a huge shout out to my team back in NY that made this possible :) — I actually had the time and energy to focus on learning, and assessing what that new knowledge could translate to when I return. I have been able to do this through an overall immersion into the culture here, attending several LXAcademys, getting involved in several projects and pitches, and meeting with members of the LXLT individually and picking their brains.
So what will I be taking back?
First of all, I am going to do my best to encourage aspects of the different work-life balance that exists over here. Things like less daily meetings, actually taking some form of a break for lunch, leaving at a reasonable hour, and a more relaxed work environment overall, are all important things that I believe enhance the happiness, health, sanity and therefore the effectiveness of the teams here. I of course need to be realistic in the inherent differences between New York City and Manchester, but I think even just making the effort to encourage these things across teams can start to make a real difference.
Second, and related to number one, I will be working to ensure that for bigger initiatives, the team is always taking the time to take a step back and assess what the client is asking for, what they really need, and what we may be able to recommend that is truly different and impactful. One thing that I have noticed with all of the work that was submitted and shortlisted at Cannes this year, is that none of that work was what the client had asked for, it had all gone above and beyond, was a bit risky, and was something we had to really push for based on key insights.
In the end of course, not only is the client appreciative of the unique thinking and execution, but the agency teams are truly proud and passionate for the work they have produced, because they have been able to work towards something they pushed for, and that they truly believe in. In doing this, we definitely need to assess situations and pick our battles, but just keeping this on the radar in general is something I will be encouraging moving forward — making sure to not sound too lofty of course :)
Third, and related to the small team structure, I have definitely noted that each team here really has their own character and personality, and they make sure to make that known in their respective spaces. Bringing out that character in their spaces with the decor around the office, music playing, and intimate and collaborative vibes seems to really facilitate that creative thinking and ideation that is required of us on a daily basis. I haven’t exactly figured out how, but I will definitely be thinking of ways to bring some of this back to the New York office.
Finally, I will of course be bringing back new ideas for our creative processes from the amazing LXAcademy sessions that I was able to attend. I will also be making a greater effort to attend both internal and external industry events more often to stay informed of the latest trends and generate new ideas. While here, I was able to attend several sessions: We Don’t Do Bland, The Fragilities and Hazards of Dr. Google, Writing a Better Content Strategy, and Shoot, Shot, Sh*t! Just Got Real.
Through each of these sessions, I was able to take a few nuggets of extremely helpful knew knowledge out and think about how I can apply them in my daily work life. From our overall creative process with We Don’t Do Bland, and Writing a Better Content Strategy, to my research process and digital recommendations with the Fragilities and Hazards of Dr. Google, and finally the photo shoot approach and process with Shoot, Shot, Sh*t! Just Got Real.
As you can likely gather, overall, this has been a great experience, and one that I truly believe is sending me back to New York with a fresh perspective, some great new ideas, and a new energy for approaching our day to day working life as advertisers.
