LXAcademy: Weaving Continuous Education into the Fabric of HAVAS Lynx Manchester (Part 1 of 2)

Paid, Earned and Owned Uniqueness

Every agency I’ve called home communicated “A STRONG COMMITMENT TO ONGOING EDUCATION AND TRAINING FOR ALL EMPLOYEES.” Each agency voiced this to me on the first day, and it was echoed by agency leadership throughout my tenure. No agency exceeded my expectations with respect to internal training and continuous education more than HAVAS Lynx Manchester. They own it, big time! It’s called LXAcademy.

Let’s explore the unique reasons why LXAcademy successfully earns this praise.

Three Keys to Success…and Cake

1. It’s advertised well…imagine that!

This should go without saying for an ad agency. It’s our core competency. That said, it often falls flat when it’s for internal purposes. Not at HAVAS Lynx Manchester. The curriculum is posted EVERYWHERE! It’s posted on all floors in multiple buildings. Static posters are tacked and clipped to walls. Session names and descriptions are plastered on wall-mounted flat screens. There’s even a fancy brochure that acts as a syllabus. It’s called the Handbook and it contains everything you need to know and participate in LXAcademy.

Our clients ask us for “surround sound” or “blitzkrieg” or “360 degree” or “multi-channel” programs, the LXAcademy internal promotions act as a case study worthy of including in a pitch deck. All these promotional assets work together to deliver one, simple, call-to-action…sign-up.

2. It’s user friendly.

Once a session has piqued your interest, there’s only one thing to do and it’s easy.. sign-up. How? Behold…an Intranet! This is another place where I’ve seen other agencies fail. Signing up via email isn’t a seamless experience (i.e. Did HR get my email? Where’s my calendar invite? Etc.) After logging into the LXAcademy intranet, you simply visit the calendar page, find your desired session and click the “Register Here” button. You instantaneously receive a confirmation email (if space is still available) as well as a plug-and-play calendar invite.

LXAcademy sessions typically garner maximum participation. Once sign-up is available for a session, you better jump at it. You snooze, you lose.

3. It’s edu-taining.

I know “edu-taining” isn’t a word. It’s not even a good made up word. It sucks, but it’s the best I can do at the moment. And it works. The session leaders I experienced were great presenters. They evoked inspiration by…wait for it…making it FUN. They told jokes, they made fun of themselves, they made fun of clients. It’s cliché, but making learning fun is still the best way to ensure people learn.

Adam Emmott (pictured left) even brought cake for everyone. Cake wins hearts and minds. It’s science.

Take Notice HAVAS

A highly successful internal training/education program is a difficult thing to accomplish. It requires significant amounts of ideating, planning, resourcing ($), identifying by speaker or thought leaders and investing time of employees in something other than billable work. These collective, core reasons are why I believe other agencies sometimes fail to meet expectations or even sniff the new bar of excellence set by HAVAS Lynx Manchester and LXAcademy.

Not LXAcademy by HAVAS Lynx Manchester. They tick all the important boxes for creating a successful internal training ecosystem. It’s a case study to be followed on how to weave continuous learning into the fabric of an agency. HAVAS Lynx Manchester and LXAcademy have put us on notice.