Two more opportunities....

It never rains but it pours. Two more opportunities have landed with us.

The first is with Iris, whose scheme closes on the 31st of January.

This year they have revamped their scheme and it includes:

· A two-year programme with four six-month rotations across planning, account management and specialist disciplines (PR, digital and experiential) with one placement in a global location.

· Guidance from board level mentor and iris buddies

· Accredited learning from the CAM foundation

· Monthly seminars with industry speakers to get an insight into the client side of advertising and marketing

· Peer group time dedicated to sharing, learning and supporting each other

· Over 24 workshops focused on key aspects of the account handler role

· Six integration days providing exposure to all of iris’ disciplines

The application form can be downloaded here: http://www.iris-global.com/irispotential/ and there is also info on how to get a creative grad placement there too (‘The Bunker’) Wannabe-grads can also find us on facebook or twitter (@irisgrads).


The second opportunity is with the Brooklyn Brothers, who are a very new creative hotshop.

They've just launched the Brooklyn Brotherhood. Check it out - it looks very interesting. Not your typical application. It closes on the 31st of March.

Best of luck with both of them.

Two new vacancies...

I don't know whose image this is, but nicked from imgfave.com.

Hello there.

Lot time no post, but we have not one but TWO new vacancies for you guys to have a look at.

The first is at Euro RSCG, who are looking for account execs (excitingly, there aren't any accounts specified...it could be anything). Shuck Jo Austin-Olsen your CV. Her email's as follows: joanne.austin-olsen at eurorscg dot com. This has now closed. Thanks for your applications.

The second is at Rapier, who are also looking for account executives. There are two roles here - send your CV to Nikki.Longhurst at rapieruk dot com.

Best of luck.

The Great Lottery...

A possibility.

Quite a few of you will already have had, or will be beginning to have, second round interviews. Congratulations are in order. You're past the first round stage, which is a massive achievement in itself.

And I thought it'd be a good idea to write some second round tips and tricks, whilst underlining the most important thing to take away from the whole experience.

The most important (and honest) thing to say is that it's all a bit of a lottery, really. If you've gotten this far, you'll be good enough to work in this business. You have the qualifications to prosper, you undoubtedly write well, and know what you're talking about. But the second round is ultimately like preparing for an exam. You prepare for ages, try to second guess what you'll be asked to do, but it comes down to on the day. You can think you've done incredibly well and still not get through.

Depressing? Perhaps, but it's not meant to be. You're in a situation which has many chaos elements, and i'll outline them. These points should hopefully help.

1) Other Candidates

You're surrounded by the sort of people who only have two things in common with you. Firstly, that they want a career in advertising (for the most part - some are dabbling), and secondly, that they impressed your interviewers well enough to be there. But they won't be the same as you. Oh no. Some will be loud. Some will be quiet. Many will have done vastly different degrees and have had very different experiences. I remember one of my second round interviews; one of the blokes there was a very promising acoustic guitarist, and preceded to sing a song half way through the day. Never found out if he got through.

But again, don't worry about it. What you can learn from the other candidates is a little about the sort of people the agency is looking for. Do you think everyone else in the room is a bit of a ball-breaker? Well, that might tell you a little bit about the agency's culture. Maybe they like the sort of people who'd sell their own grandmothers to make an ad. Or, are they all the sort of people who've taken up knitting at 22? Again, it'll help you learn what the agency wants. And this is useful when trying to understand whether you'd fit in - because, God knows, this is just as much about you as it is the place. There's nothing worse than forcing yourself to like a place and hating it from the outset.

2) The Tasks

Hopefully, this won't be like The Apprentice. But if it is, don't panic; again, it tells you something about the sort of place you might work at. I remember being asked at one agency to try and make something (out of selected materials) to stop an egg from smashing. Wacky, a bit mad, but interesting.

Now, this might seem very trivial, much like some of the more spurious and odd questions you were asked in round one. And it can piss some people off. I mean, who gives a flying fuck about keeping an egg alive? Well, there are two points to this. One is the crux of the matter - there's always a question behind this sort of thing. Why, in God's name, would you be asked about something like that? It's really to see how you react and how you think. It's a lateral thinking exercise; only in this instance, you're in a room full of people who're keeping an eye on you, and assessing your response and how you work with others.

Throwing your arms up in the arm and saying 'it's fucked', while possibly the correct response if this was an everyday situation, won't endear you to your team or the people having a look at you. That said, being entirely po-faced about the situation isn't realistic either. Having a chuckle and a laugh with the people who're in your team is the right sort of response. The second (but no less important) point is that you get asked all sorts of strange things in advertising. Things that make you wonder why you need a degree to have gotten onto the grad scheme, that your client is potentially nuts, and that bond you and your team together. That's just advertising, and the second round tasks are the start of realising that.

3) The Presentation

I'm not going to go as far as saying 'it's like a pitch', because you usually have something ressembling a series of facts to go from in a pitch. But, it is just as much a 'on the day' thing as a pitch. That really confident, brassy Brummie girl, who claimed to love presenting? Her freezing on the spot might happen, and often does. That quiet Swedish bloke? He'll come up with the goods when it looked like a stiff breeze might blow him over.

Don't rely, or expect the presentation to go as planned. Also, those people who 'win' the presentation don't always get jobs. It'll be a combination of how you work with your team, and what you've contributed to the whole day. There won't be one moment where you think you've suddenly cracked it. You never truly know. You can have an idea of just what the individual judges are after (based on their job role - the planner will be interested in the sort of insights you've come up with, the account handler will want to know how you promise to deliver it, and how it'll work moving forward), but there's always room for someone to charm the room with a captivating presentation.

4) Your Judges

Already alluded to in point three, the people popping in to see you are a funny bunch. You can't really second guess them. Is asking for help, or for their opinion a good thing? Do they expect you to be self-sufficient? (Well, in truth, nobody expects you to do it on your own, so don't be afraid to ask them what they think).

And that friendly planner who's been giving you advice all day? He may just turn into an absolute bastard when assessing your presentation, just to see how you react. And what of agency management, who (if my experiences are reliable) swan in towards the end of the day - not having been able to give up the whole day - and decide just who they like during the presentations? What's worse...they have the ability to overrule people who have spent the whole day with you. The best won't, mind.

How the whole bunch are with you will give you an insight into that mysterious thing, 'agency culture' too. No matter how friendly, shiny or spangly the website or rumour about them in Campaign might seem, this is where you begin to have an idea about them. Would you, in truth, like to work for them? Respect is key in this situation. Sure, you want a job in advertising; you don't want to work for a bunch of fuckwits who mistreat you and have egos the size of small planets. Don't go in with those kind of preconceptions. People are those who make agencies - they may once, for example, have been a great agency, but the people you meet on the day are those partially responsible for improving it and winning business. Do you trust them to help train you and make you better?

Some Final Words...

If rumour is to be believed, Sorrell, Bullmore and Steel (the owner, ex-JWT ECD/Chairman and WPP special consultant and the man who runs the WPP Fellowship) were all rejected by JWT on their graduate recruitment scheme. One now owns the entire network, the other was Chairman, the last is still called upon by JWT to help with pitches.

Personally, I was rejected by Lowe when I applied for a graduate job with them in 2005. I've just finished two happy years there. Being rejected from the graduate scheme doesn't mean you can never work in a place, or ever work in advertising. Sure, it's hard to take when you're used to achieving academically - but that's real life, i'm afraid. Keep trying, and you'll get in. Grad schemes aren't always the way in. Getting in is by far the hardest thing to do though.

If you're one of the lucky few who got through; congratulations. It'll be a helluva ride.

Two other grad schemes...

Another good thing with 'two' in the title.

Short but sweet, this 'un.

Rainey Kelly Campbell Roalfe/Y&R and Clemmow Hornby Inge have opened their grad schemes. Sorry for not picking them up sooner.

Rainey Kellys' deadline is the 29th of November.

CHI's is the 27th of November.

Best of luck guys and gals.

Five First Round Interview Tips...

Try to look less like an illustration than this guy. Via country_boy_shane. Usual rules apply.

We're right in the thick of advertising interview season. By now, first round acceptance emails and letters will be winging their way to those lucky few.

And it suddenly hits you; shit, this is all a bit real.

Well, as someone who's had more than a few grad interviews, I thought i'd share a few first round interview tips. Read on, Macduff:

1) It's likely to be pretty formulaic.

For all of the challenging questions you received in the grad application form, most of the real life interviews will follow a set routine. They sort of have to; you've still got hundreds of grads at this stage, and you need to have something straightforward to judge them on. How they usually go is to talk about you and your achievements/CV/answers in the first half, then talk about some ads (usually print), and what you think the message behind them is. There may be a few lateral thinking questions thrown in at the end (what product would you invent being a favourite), but many don't even do this. It depends on the mood of your interviewer/how engaged they are with you.

2) Good Cop, Bad Cop exists.

Now, normally, you'll be interviewed by a planner and an account handler. Sometimes these are in the same room, other times they are in separate rooms. Every now and then you might have two account handlers, or (rarely), a account handler and a HR person. Though the latter is fairly rare.

In the most conventional (planner/account man) situation, there will definitely be a good cop and bad cop. And, to be honest, usually the planner's the nice one, and the suit's the more tricky. (Of course, sometimes both are lovely). Why? Well, planners are interested in people who are lateral thinkers, and got into the job to find out about people. Don't be surprised if they just let you talk, then get excited, and you find yourself talking about something else entirely. Account handlers on the other hand - they want to make sure you can do the job, and will be looking for obvious reasons as to why and how you can do it. You're a raw material to both, but in the case of the latter, you're one they don't want to have to refine much.

3) You don't have to fill the silence.

I speak with real conviction on this point, because it's something I (still) struggle with. It's especially hard when speaking a lot and having a point of view about an intangible book or theory in University is positively encouraged. And, while there are rarely concrete 'right' answers in advertising, there are those which are nearer to right than wrong. You can easily go the other way if you talk too much. Feel free to ask questions too - let people talk, tell you what it's like to work at agency x or y. They won't mind.

If you find yourself talking, and wonder just what point you're making - it happens to all of us now and then - then shut up, or re-direct the conversation.

4) Know your ideas.

Most candidates won't know the difference between executional and campaign ideas. Most won't have a point of view which bears in mind why or how crap work comes to be made - a lot just like the ads on the telly. So know this stuff. Don't get me wrong, post-rationalising why an ad is a certain way isn't an exact science, but you should have an idea about just why an ad turned out a as it did.

Just don't do what I did, and slag off a very well known campaign, then get told 'you're not strategic'. Don't let your prejudices stop you getting through to the next round - christ, i'm a planner now, but just speaking my mind without thinking things through when I was a grad did for me. (You'll also end up working with those people whose ad you spoke about at some stage. It's sod's law).

5) Relax.

Frankie Goes to Hollywood had it right. Relax, don't open your mouth without thinking about what you've got to say. And, for God's sake, let your personality out. It's the only way you'll know for sure about whether (at this stage) you'll fit into an agency. Yes, it's just a first round interview, but if you can't be yourself/feel trapped, then the place probably isn't for you.

You'll just know this, I think. An interview situation is always artificial, and you may just not get on with your interviewer (Lord knows it happens - you're probably the 50th person who's made the same comment about the work). Despite this, you can usually tell whether you'd like working in a place - you can sometimes tell from the worried looks on the faces of the account execs hurrying around the agency.

Letting your personality has another advantage too - you may not think it, but I bet your interviewer is wondering what you'd be like to be stuck on a train with, or on a very boring conference call. Will you be someone who's interesting and interested, or will you be someone who bores the bejesus out of most people?

Best of luck to everyone going for their first rounders...

BMB need YOU...

There may be this level of handlebar 'taches in the agency. One can only hope.

Hi gang.

There's another opportunity for you guys. If you're interested, email Tom Brady (tom dot brady at bmbagency dot com):

BMB are looking for a digital production intern for 3 months to assist in our burgeoning department.

Responsibilities include:

• Assisting with the scoping of projects (statements of work, timings, budgets)
• Liaising with the traffic department to make sure work is effectively developed
• Liaising with the client services department to ensure the smooth transition of projects
• Dealing with digital client administration as and when required
• Briefing designers and developers on projects
• Working with the TV production department on projects as and when required

This in an internship position with a nominal weekly allowance, but with the distinct possibility of a perm role at the end of the period.

The ideal person will have the following attributes:

• Knowledge of the digital advertising industry
• A well rounded, outgoing and enthusiastic personality
• Excellent attention to detail
• Positive problem solving approach to work
• Ability to multi-task and prioritise large workloads
  

So there you have it. Best of luck guys.

EDIT: This position has now been filled.

More Grad Scheming...

I can safely say you won't be working for him.

Following on from the seemingly exhaustive list of grad schemes we posted a little while ago, there are even more that've opened.

The Cossette lot have opened. So this means:

Dare Digital have opened, deadline's the 15th of November.

MCBD have opened. Get your apps in, also by the 15th of November.

I'm not sure about Elvis - couldn't find anything. Anyone from Elvis want to confirm?

If there are any more we've missed, give us a shout. Ogilvy & McCann still haven't opened.