FYI, Portfolio Night 11 Tix Are Now On Sale

Yes, kids, it’s time to get those portfolios in shape as the annual Portfolio Night event is just a month away. The 11th annual installment of the recruiting/review event will take place simultaneously on May 22 in 24 participating cities around the world including Athens, New York and Tokyo. For the first time, Portfolio Night, which was founded by IHaveAnIdea, will be presented by the Art Directors Club, with this year’s theme being the “3-Hour Job Hunt” (promo video produced with 360i and starring IHAVEANIDEA founder/current ADC executive director Ignacio Oreamuno above).

Anyhow, tickets for the event are now on sale. Over the weekend, Tokyo celebrated its first time participating in Portfolio Night by launching the horror-themed promo below. Being fans of the genre, we just couldn’t resist.

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MEPlusYOU Prez Turns Focus to Shoe Company

To expand on what tipsters were telling us yesterday, yes, Marc Blumberg, currently president at MEPlusYOU–aka the agency formerly known as imc2–is turning his attention to his consumer shoe brand that he launched with his wife, Sharon. So, what does this mean exactly? Well, the folks at the agency echo what we’ve been hearing on the Spy line, mainly that the 16-year vet will be transitioning into a “key advisor” role at the agency so he can split time between his shoe venture and MEPlusYOU. In turn, Blumberg will be transitioning some of his agency responsibilities to current MEPlusYOU CEO, Doug Levy.

We’re still trying to get the actual name of the shoe company launched by Blumberg, which we’ve been told is “built on the principles of relationship era marketing and conscious capitalism.” Take that as you will. Along with Blumberg’s transition, MEPlusYou says that it’s made a key addition to its leadership team, which will be revealed in the next week or so. Update: Blumberg’s shoe company is called Chooze Shoes.

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Moxie Parts Ways with a Couple of VPs

Well, here we go again. Despite assembling its self-proclaimed leadership “dream team” a month ago, a ph0ne call has confirmed that Atlanta-based Moxie Interactive has in the process parted ways with a couple of VP’s over the past week or so including Jennifer Jones, VP of social media strategy, and prior to that, VP/group program director, Rebecca Page.

There’s no word on other cuts at the moment, but Page spent the last two years at Moxie’s ATL hub, initially joining as program director on the agency’s Verizon business after spending time at the likes of IQ Interactive and what eventually became LBi Atlanta. Jones, meanwhile joined Moxie barely seven months ago after serving as an SVP at Publicis Groupe’s flagship strategic comms/engagement, MSL Group.

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Wehrenberg Indeed Stepping Down as Campbell Mithun CEO

It looks like Campbell Mithun itself beat us to the punch on this news, but yes, as the IPG-owned agency announced late last Friday, its CEO, Steve Wehrenberg, is leaving come June for a leadership post at University of Minnesota, where he will serve as teaching professor of strategic communication and program director of its Strategic Communication graduate program. It’s familiar territory for Wehrenberg, who’s been teaching at U of MN over the last seven-plus years. The soon-to-be departing CEO, though, will indefinitely serve as a consultant at Campbell Mithun once he leaves his post.

Wehrenberg, who’s been with Campbell Mithun for nearly three decades, has served as its CEO since 2007, when he took over for Jack Rooney. We’ve been told by the agency that an external CEO search is now underway with the goal being to name a successor by summer.

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Your Ads Are Lovely, But Please Make Me A Product That Sings

Agency staff are no longer content with making ads. And the lack of contentment does not stop there.

Agency staff are no longer content with making brand-sponsored content or content for the social stream. To fully activate the creative mindset and employ all the great tools available today, agency staff of the world must make products!

According to USA TODAY, Crispin, Porter + Bogusky introduced the Papa’s Pilar-branded line of superpremium rum. In February, Bartle Bogle Hegarty launched its piano-playing tutorial, Playground Sessions. Additionally, executives at MMB created a line of charity-focused, environmentally friendly kids’ clothes, backpacks and books.

Chris Vance, head of BBH’s innovation division, ZAG, says the thought was “Could we do a Rosetta Stone for musical instruments?” he says, comparing his product to the language-learning software. After they came up with the concept, they brought on others, including digital software firm Rain and composer Quincy Jones.

Deutsch LA is also committed to innovation and product development. Winston Binch, chief digital officer, thinks agencies are better poised than others to create products that consumers will actually use.

“I think marketers make really great inventors because we understand culture, we understand people.”

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RPA Lists its Displaced Staffers, Tries to Help Them Land New Gigs

 

Sorry for the small image size folks, but shitty photo-editing software will do that to you. Anyhow, perhaps taking a cue from JD Beebe and his quest to land displaced Goodby staffers post-Sprint loss a new gig, Santa Monica-based RPA is doing the same with “RPA Recruitable.”

This is the verbatim copy on the homepage: “It’s been a transformative 2013 for us, and while we look to the rest of the year and beyond with great hope and anticipation, there are some who unfortunately cannot make the journey with us. There is no community like the ad community. Let’s come together to help place the displaced. Browse our displaced associates by department and/or location and click or tap their tile for more info.” We’re determining how real deal Holyfield this is, but if true, it’s nice of an agency itself to help out their own former staffers, who range from broadcast to strategy to experiential. Your move, recruiters.

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Let’s Wind Down the Day with a Brutal Film Festival Promo from RPA & Tool, Shall We?

As the opening moments states, viewer discretion is advised with this lengthy promo from RPA and Tool, who for the fourth year in a row are teaming up to hype the Newport Beach Film Festival. If you haven’t seen Corbin’s Bernsen‘s epic, award-winning (ok, not really) The Dentist saga or better yet The Marathon Man, consider this clip called “Mandible” the Cliff’s Notes version.

Again, this is not for the squeamish (though as a horror fan it’s not all that shocking; as a guy who’s got a dentist appointment next week, that’s another story), but in a statement regarding “Mandible,” RPA creative director Scott McDonald says, “We wanted to demonstrate the power of film by taking audiences to a heightened state of emotion and then pulling them back to reality, reminding them that they’re watching particles of light on a screen.” Perhaps what we’re seeing is how RPA felt during the recent Honda review, but who knows, they came out of it pretty OK and so will you. The Newport Beach Film Festival begins April 25 and runs through May 2. Enjoy the show, kids. Credits after the jump.

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Here’s Some Quick Clarification Regarding Havas and its Ties with Claire’s, Beam

Over the last 24 hours, we’ve had a few seemingly panicked tips coming in regarding the status of Havas Chicago’s relationship with clients including spirits giant Beam such as ones like this: “We have just been told we lost Jim Beam. Only was told because of Sauza debacle. But Beam loss is big, it was our second [biggest] account.”

Well, once again, slow down for a sec. We’ve been told by sources in the know that Havas Chicago’s contract with Beam brands Sauza (you can read all about the recent ad controversy here) and Hornitos runs until 2014, and next year, the spirits brand has decided to focus on the Hispanic market and is therefore planning on moving its business for its aforementioned pair of tequila brands to a Hispanic agency. Still, Havas Chicago continues to work on Beam’s vodka brands including Pucker and Effen.

As for mall boutique chain Claire’s, which awarded AOR duties to what was then Euro RSCG Chicago last August, our sources tell us that the brand has built up its own marketing department in recent months and is taking most of the work in-house. Havas Chicago, though, will continue to work with Claire’s on a project basis according to those in the know. No word yet, though, if the Beam and Claire’s moves will result in any immediate cuts.

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Artists Draw on the Walls for Sid Lee’s ‘Blackboard Day’

For anyone who’s ever tried to write with chalk, you know how challenging it can be to neatly scratch out a few words on a chalkboard. Drawing a huge mural with chalk seems exponentially daunting, which makes the projects recently completed by 15 artists in Sid Lee’s Montreal office (specifically its workshop, or “atelier” as they call it) all the more impressive.

 

The mural tradition–called Blackboard Day–has been going on at Sid Lee for the past decade. The artists, who are represented by MASSIVart, created the murals during a workday, as 350 Sid Lee employees went about their business. The event probably killed office productivity for a short time, but now the staff gets to look at artwork while most of us get to stare at plain walls in our cubicles and uninspiring workspaces. The murals will stay in the office for a few months before being rotated out for newer art created by different artists. Now, I wish I tried harder when writing on the board in elementary school. One more of several pieces after the jump.

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72andSunny, McCann, R/GA, john st. Among 17th Annual Webby Nominees

It’s almost that time again to roll out the five-word speeches as the folks behind the Webbys have announced the nominees for their 17th annual event (promo above), which will be broadcast online on May 22  while host and actual venue for the event will be announced next week.

Along with the usual suspects like Nike (which leads the pack with 17 nods), Google, FunnyorDie and Mashable as well as celebs ranging from Tom Hanks to Lena Dunham, the agency world once again gets plenty of kudos in this year’s installment. Among the notables include McCann Melbourne, which is up for a Webby in the Viral category for “Dumb Ways to Die”, Toronto’s john st., which is up for an award in the “Best Copywriting” category for its “Buyral” clip (below), and 72andSunny, which has earned a nod in Integrated Campaigns category for its Call of Duty work. As is the norm, you can weigh in via the People’s Voice Awards, which you can vote on until April 25.  Check out the full list of nominees here.

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TiVo Taps Olson for AOR Duties

After handling advertising and digital work in-house in recent years, TiVo is thinking outside the box, so to speak, and has named Minneapolis-based Olson as its new agency of record for advertising, web, consumer PR (previously handled by Allison + Partners) and social projects. There was a review for the TiVo biz, though no word yet on who else participated.

In a statement, Doug Bieter, TiVo’s VP of consumer sales and marketing says, “We were impressed by the depth and breadth of Olson’s ideas and their ability to seamlessly integrate the multiple aspects of our market differentiation and bold plans for the future. By retaining an agency of Olson’s stature, we are consolidating best-in-class advertising, digital and PR strategies that will be a tremendous asset as we build our brand and spread the word about the distinct value of the TiVo experience.”

According to those in the know, after a bit of a rough patch, TiVo has been on an upswing since last year (check out the brand’s Q4 report for context). Wit the win, Olson, which also picked up AOR duties for Saucony in recent months, is now in the process of developing “a multi-channel brand enhancement effort” for its newest client.

New Career Opportunities Daily: The best jobs in media.

Cream Filling Found: Campbell Mithun Announces Twinkie Internship Finalists

Last month, we wrote about Minneapolis-based Campbell Mithun and their 8th annual “Lucky 13″ internship contest focused on branding Twinkies in a fresh and innovative way. Five weeks later, the agency just announced their 13 finalists with a short video.

Of the 13 college kids selected, four go to Minnesota schools, two come from Iowa State, and a couple more (Duke, UNC, Wake Forest) learn in the South. This shouldn’t be too surprising–according to a Gallup poll, Iowa and North Carolina have two of the highest state obesity rates in the United States. People love their Twinkies, so advertisers need to know how to get it to them effectively. The applicant ideas range from online Twinkie games to a “Fate of the Twinkie Hoarders” reality campaign that sounds equally entertaining and disturbing.

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Grippo Takes Over as Huge SF MD

We’ve received confirmation that Alison Grippo has taken over as managing director of Huge’s San Francisco office, which she helped get up and running over the last year and now boasts a headcount of 30 staffers along with clients like Twitter and HomeAdvisor. Grippo, who has been with Huge since 2010 and also helped set up the IPG-owned digital agency’s London office, succeeds Wing Pepper in San Francisco.

From what we’ve been told, Pepper is taking a break from the agency world after twenty years and is planning on starting up his own operation. For the time being, though, he’s still consulting at Huge, where he’s spent the last two-and-a-half years, and helping out with Grippo’s transition. Prior to Huge, Pepper spent several years as an EVP on the account/digital side at MRM. As for Grippo, the new San Francisco MD most recently served as global director of program management and delivery. During her career, the exec has also worked at the likes of iCrossing and Razorfish.

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Brutal Simplicity Of Thought Looks Good But Simply Lacks A Deep Purpose

I have to admit, I’m a sucker for books like the one created by M&C Saatchi, “Brutal Simplicity of Thought: How It Changed The World.”

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Much like its title implies, this is a simple book: Elegantly written and designed, each two-page spread offers a simple visual, along with one question and a three-sentence answer. Some of the premises are more philosophical than others:

“How did an Irish Pointer discover Velcro?”
“How do you wage war without violence?”
“How do you get the customer to make your products?”

Sometimes, not always, the answer is a brand, a product, even an ad campaign created in the 70′s and 80′s heyday of Saatchi & Saatchi and later, M&C Saatchi. Taken as a whole, the topics fill in some trivia gaps and inspire bigger thinking.

That’s the tricky part about the book: It feels more like a trivia coffeetable book than a real source of creative inspiration. It’s fun to read, but who knows how often anyone might refer back to it after they’ve finished it. Still, Brutal Simplicity of Thought is the perfect gift book to keep around an office, just in case the old CAs and One Show Annuals disappear.

Thanks to St. Martin’s Press for providing me with a review copy.

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Colle+McVoy’s On the Hunt for the ‘Brightest, Most Creative and Inventive Interns’

What is it with Minneapolis-based agencies and their intern-wrangling? We’ve covered the tactics of Campbell Mithun in the past and now, it’s Colle+McVoy’s turn with its own recruitment efforts to find interns who, yes, have a sense of humor (seriously, we think you have to in this type of gig).

As for the internship itself, it involves client engagement across account management, strategy and media, so let the fun begin. Here are two of the positions the Twin Cities agency is looking to fill along with a digital studio artist, graphic designer and interactive designer. See the requirements and other pieces of pertinent info here. And no, there are no Twinkies concepts required from this particular MN shop.

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We Hear: Lyons Joining Farrell at Havas?

Well, since our inquiries last week to Havas regarding Vin Farrell went nowhere because Adweek apparently had some exclusive/vice grip on the agency’s comms, let’s just go “we hear” on this one before another “exclusive” pops up. Along with said agency’s new global chief content officer, we’ve been hearing all week that fellow R/GA-er Sean Lyons is following suit and joining up with Havas. Lyons has spent well over eight years at the agency for the digital age and for the last year has served as SVP, operations and business planning.

During his lengthy stay at R/GA, Lyons has moved up the ladder from group director to managing director to his current SVP post. We’ve checked in with both camps about the apparent move, but have yet to hear back. Maybe it was something we said, but we’ll let you know if we hear more.

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Advertising Could Use Some Farm-to-Table Thinking

In the first episode of “Portlandia,” Fred and Carrie order meals in a restaurant, then decide to visit a farm to find out how the animals they’re eating were raised.

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Absurd? Maybe. But I’ve noticed that when I visit local farmers’ markets, I appreciate the growers and farmers, and their food, more.

I think that more clients and agencies — all members of the team — should visit each other and meet regularly. We’d get better work that way. So why doesn’t it happen?

Many agencies don’t trust a lot of their people to interact with clients. Conversely, many agency folks, particularly creatives, hate the idea of interacting with clients. But just like clients are often not trained to evaluate creative concepts, creative people are often not trained to talk business. The problems persist on both sides of the conference table.

It also comes down to money and profitability for many agencies. Time spent in meetings = time not spent making ads. While daily communication is the work of good account people, even major strategy sessions or important meetings aren’t attended by most of the people actually making the work every day. Still, building trust is key for all members of the team.

It’s the subject of my new column on Talent Zoo.

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Olson COO Murphy Takes On New Title

Just to soothe the usual doomsday tips, we’ve been told by those in the know that Margaret Murphy‘s position as chief operating officer at Olson is indeed being eliminated, but the exec is very much within the fold at the Minneapolis-based agency. Murphy will now take on the role of president at Olson’s 1:1 loyalty marketing unit, which works with likes of Amtrak, Best Buy and Toys “R” Us, as president. From what we’ve been told, the role shift is part of a “flattening” of sorts of leadership at the agency courtesy of CEO John Partilla, who took over for Kevin DiLorenzo at the beginning of the year.

Murphy most recently served as president/COO at the agency and was part of the initial leadership team when Olson joined forces with Denali Marketing back in 2010. During her career, Murphy also spent nearly two decades at fellow Twin Cities operation Carlson Marketing Group, where she last served as SVP, client services.

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iCrossing Cuts Some Staff

Sources familiar with the matter confirm that Hearst-owned digital agency iCrossing has cut some staff in its New York headquarters. From what we’ve been told, six people across departments were let go last week as part of “a realignment of skills based on client needs.” This in turn accounts for less than one percent of the agency’s 900+ staffers across 18 global offices (the Salt Lake City branch, if you recall, closed earlier this year).

Among those cut were Tarah Feinberg, who’s still listed in the “People” section of the iCrossing site and has served as head of its Live Media Studio unit, as well as Rachel Pasqua, who’s had two stints at the agency, spending six years in all serving as VP, mobile. As for Feinberg (pictured), the now-former senior director at iCrossing spent a couple of years serving as VP/executive director at Big Fuel prior to joining the former agency.

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Take That, Dominos. Pizza Hut Enlists Artist to Live-Draw Fan Requests for Box Art

Fresh off of its April Fools stunt, Toronto agency Grip Limited once again lands on our radar with this effort for client, Pizza Hut Canada, in which said shop has commissioned the services of an artist (waiting on the name) to live-draw requests for the chain’s box art this afternoon. From what we’ve been told, this part of the brand’s celebration of gaining 200,000 fans of its Canadian operations on Facebook, and in the process, Grip is getting requests via comment threads on Twitter, Facebook and YouTube. For some reason, those at Grip choose to go through our tips box to send us material, hence the lack of credits or any other proper attribution. You know where to reach us, gang, so please oblige.

Update: And just like that, your Grip Ltd. credits after the jump.

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