Two updates in a week - I'm trying to fulfil my New Year's resolution of updating AdGrads more frequently, y'see.
Anyway, my employer, Anomaly, is after a runner for our London office. You'd get to work with me..you..err, lucky things.
Details of the job are below, and ideally, you'd be available to start at the beginning of February. It is paid.
"We're after a runner for our London office, based in Clerkenwell. The runner's job is to keep the agency running smoothly, primarily assisting with office admin..
Examples of the sort of duties you'd be expected to perform include:
Answering phones
Dealing with post
Booking and setting up meeting rooms with tea and coffee
Running errands
Keeping the place neat and tidy
Booking out meeting rooms
Ordering stationery, paper and other office supplies
Booking a variety of things - travel, couriers, taxis, IT/AV equipment
Helping organise office parties
Additionally, you're more than welcome to get involved with other agency work, but the duties above take priority.
I have been alerted by Lucy Minton (who works at Karmarama) that the blighters have gone and opened their graduate scheme.
You can find it here, on Facebook. You need to fill out their questions by the 17th of April.
You need to be free in late April/early May for an interview, and if successful (you'll be told on the 20th of May) you will take part in a summer internship with two others across the summer - across July, August and September.
The successful grad will then be offered a job in Account Management.
TBWA's graduate scheme has just opened. Details are here, on their Facebook page.
Application is via video, talking around two areas:
1. Talk for no longer than two minutes about something you are passionate about. 2. Talk for no longer than two minutes about a brand that you love (not to include Apple, Innocent, Google or Virgin).
As some of you may know, NABS is a charity for the communications industries. They do a heckuva lot of charitable stuff, such as helping recently unemployed people find work, housing, and even help out with grad recruitment and help creatives find partners.
They're also putting on a graduate recruitment half day at JWT, and Sam and I have been asked to speak. Details are below:
"Thomas Crapper did not invent the flush toilet. A duck's quack doesn't have an echo. Advertising is not all long lunches and witty lines. Come to JWT on Monday 24th of August at 10am to find out more about the truths of advertising: What an agency does, how it works and how does it. And how to get in."
The agenda is below:
1. Welcome address (10am)
2. JWT welcome (10.05-15)
3. How an agency works (10.15-45)
4. How to be a good Account Man (10.45-11.10)
5. A creative perspective (11.10)
6. Break (11.30-45)
7. AdGrads: The Perils of Online Relationships (11.45-12.15)
8. Group exercise (12.15-50)
9. Q&A session (12.50-1)
Please contact s.long@nabs.org.uk to get your name on the list for the workshop.
For more information go here, but some of the blurb is below. No CVs...interesting stuff.
Role:
Graduate Account Executive
Experience:
Graduate level with a good (and relevant) degree with any agency work experience being a distinct advantage.
How to apply:
CV’s are boring. Why not send us a link to your blog, website/online portfolio or social networking page – or even create a short video-clip of why you want to work for Albion and post it on YouTube or Vimeo. Make it stand out – be original. Point of contact: Neil Potter
Short and sweet one. Rapier are looking for an account exec (ability with an actual rapier is a quality I don't think you need, but i'm sure it wouldn't hurt).
EDIT: Rapier are now interviewing. Thanks to everyone for applying.
As you can see in the sidebar, the grad scheme has begun. But, along with that, we've made a cheeky short film for you guys to have a look at, as well as some real life employees' (shock!) views on life at Lowe.
There have been a bunch of opportunities that have been slipped through our proverbial mailboxes in the last week or so, so here we go.
Lowe London have a grad scheme going for start in January 2010, they're recruiting for both Account Handlers and Planners. As a bonus, you get to direct your gaze upon Will Humphrey every day if you get in - I don't think you need much more incentive to get your application on. Apply here (click "Join Us").
Next up, Protein OS (which is run by my homeboy William Rowe) is looking for a Media Sales grad to help the awesome Protein Network get up and running as they stretch out to world domination. Mr. Protein is looking for someone with a year's experience in media. If you're interested email me your cv at samismail [at] yahoo [dot] com.
Lastly, an integrated agency in London (that has asked me to keep their name secret) is looking for a creative team with a years integrated (online, dm, and above the line) experience AND an art director with a years experience also. If you're interested send me an email, again at samismail [at] yahoo [dot] com.
So just to recap
Lowe London are recruiting account handles/planners for 2010.
Protein OS is looking for a media sales graduate with a years experience.
An integrated London agency is looking for a creative team and an art director with a years experience.
This is a little bit of a sneak peak, but I thought it's worth letting y'all know this early.
I'm involved with London Digital Week (also on Twitter @digitalweek - follow us!), which is scheduled to run from the 21st to the 27th of September. The plan is that on the 27th (the Sunday) there's a day of AdGrads; some stuff from industry heavyweights, some stuff on applications and some interview tips. It should be awesome and hopefully helpful as it's at just about the right time that applications will open.
Soooo if you can, try and be free on the 27th, more details to come soon.
And if you happen to go to Warwick University, we should be doing a workshop for a small number of people, totally ripping apart application form questions and some more in-depth advice. We're really looking forward to it. If you'd like to have some similar stuff go down at your university, shoot us an email and we'll see how we can help.
In the meantime, here's a little presentation I did for Brett and his homeys at Warwick. Criticism, comments and questions as always are most welcome. Have a great weekend everyone.
This is Alfonso, the original Geronimo fish. Check him out on Twitter.
Hey everyone. Geronimo, the agency I work at are hiring! We're looking for a junior account executive to start soon to work on ING, SEAT and a bunch of new business stuff that's too secret for me to talk about on the interwebs.
We're a small-ish agency so you have to be immensely awesome in all ways, shapes and forms. If you have any questions or want to apply, send me an email with your CV so I can pass it on to HR pronto. Boom. And good luck!
Oh and no headhunters please. Muchos gracias.
Updatification: I've had about 5 CVs through in the 2 hours this has been up, keep 'em coming and thanks and good luck. Also when I wrote no headhunters I meant no headhunters. Thanks!
Update numero dos: I'll keep this post up until Friday and then it'll be looking at CVs time, have had 13 so far. Gimme some more.
A ninja-in-training type digital agency in London needs an AWESOME graduate digital designer to do some really cool stuff across their client base. You’ll need to be down with Flash, HTML, CSS, Photoshop and all types of web-related code goodness.
Email me if interested and I'll give you the details.
Just a quick update to let you guys know that Publicis have opened up their applications for this year, deadline is 1 February at 6pm and the application is here.
Also remember you can still apply to Dare as they've extended their deadline to the 20th of January. Dare's application is here.
The dust may have settled on the year that was but the graduate recruitment machine soldiers on. Today we have my homeboy Will Lion talking about digital agencies and why you should apply to Dare's grad scheme this year. Their application deadline was today, but has been extended to the 20th of this month, so get applying. And good luck.
It might be overstated (there is probably always going to be the bed, bog, bath element) but Mr Billingsley's comment is almost certainly right: we're going to be digital advertisers because the world is now digital, and getting more so.
What does all this digital malarkey mean for people looking to get into the communications business and, before we look at that, what does digital mean anyway?
One of the lovely insights of Dare's grad video; where the parents of Dare folk gloriously fail to define what their children do, is that pinning it down is tricky.
Part of its slipperiness is that things just keep shifting. Facebook was born in 2004, YouTube in 2005, Twitter in 2006, the App Store in 2008 etc. The only constant is change.
The other thing about 'digital' is that it is polysemous; it has multiple meanings.
It is used to refer to electronic media (web, screens, mobiles, ipods, nike+ shoes etc) but also, and more importantly, the behaviours those media have unleashed and fed: interaction.
There is an important difference there that Jeremy Bullmore expressed perfectly in Campaign when he said,
There are two important things there for grads trying to get into the industry. The first is, whose roof?
Most of you will have been concentrating on the big above-the-line ones. That is a good bet for a digital future as long as that ATL agency gets digital, which means they aren't just talking about it, they're doing it (hmm, a black sheep has just popped into my head.)
On the other hand, another good bet are the agencies whose best is yet to come: the digital ones, primed as they are to thrive in the coming digital ecosystem.
And now for the second important bit of Mr Bullmore's quote: if you're worried about applying to a digital agency because it's got the word digital in it, don't be: as he says, it's not really about tech, it's about interactivity.
In my experience grads tend to think of digital as something on-the-sidey and techy. Maybe it once was. Now it ain't. Technology is so ubiquitous, so ready-to-hand, that it's becominginvisible and when that happens it gets socially interesting.In other words, technology and culture used to be separate, increasingly they are the same (look what you're doing now.)
It's a brilliant time to get into an industry that's only going to grow (even in these tough times) and that's much more about interesting interactive ideas than it is about tech.
They give with one hand...and can sort you out. Photo via benaspenod, usual rules apply.
Hello there. In between bouts of turkey, drinking, presents and sitting, I've had a few notes about that mythical beast, work experience.
If you've not been one of the lucky ones who've gotten in through the grad scheme milkround, perhaps it's the right time to start to think about a spot of time in an agency. It may not be paid, it may not be the most exciting job in the world, but it's vital in order to beef up your cv and prove that you really want to be here.
Personally, I found it invaluable, doing a few bouts of work experience (though don't go mad with it - you don't want to look like a bridesmaid and never a bride). Certainly helped me decide what job I thought i'd be best suited for (though work experience did sort of seem to be either superb fun, and somewhat unreal, or work the account execs couldn't be buggered to do themselves).
It's also good, because it teaches you about what sort of agency environment you'd like to be involved with - are you a big agency person, or a small one? Do you value a place which places great emphasis on creativity, but is a bit of a sweatshop? What do you thrive on?
Annnnyway...those are some of its benefits. But how'd you get it?
The simple answer is - it's not easy, but it can be done. There has been some chat about nepotism, but let me assure you - though it may exist, it can be overcome through persistence. I used to rant and rave about it too, but hell, it's just another barrier, and one which exists in pretty much every industry. Grit your teeth and get on with it; i'd suggest doing the following:
1) Blanket email - but with a caveat. Write a couple of short paragraphs about yourself and why you think you'd be suitable for some work experience. Try to be original, but short. HR people don't have all day to read these things, and they get enough of them.
2) Ring. Ring at the right time. Anyone can pick up the phone to an agency. 's not hard...christ, embattled account execs have to deal with a large variety of mad requests from clients. But HR people aren't used to such weird requests ("Can you make the colour a little bit more...sympathetic?). So, pick your moments. Just after you've sent your email, phone the agency, ask to speak to the head of HR (or someone similar - if you've done your homework, you should have a reasonable idea of whom it is) and say you've sent a note through.
Be warned though, phone during the day, rather than early morning or late in the working day, and you'll get a short shrift. HR folk don't have time during the day to deal with you. If you are the first email to get their attention, you'll do ok. And they'll be more likely to bear you in mind.
3) Do something different. This being advertising, people often try 'creative' ways to get in. One of the best i've ever heard about was an ad being placed by the agency with a pair of shoes, and the line "Think you could walk a mile in these shoes?", recruiting for agency staffers. Well, the chap in question found a life sized dummy, the pair of shoes, and wrote his CV on the side of the dummy, with the line "I think i've filled them", and posted the lot. Needless to say, he got in.
In recent years, i've seen people post cake or try to scare W&K, and some have been successful. Others, less so - but it gets your name in front of people, and means they remember you. Heck, even our own Sammy and Anton both got on in the industry by doing it.
Obviously, it's best if there is a point, and it's not just 'wacky' for the sake of it. The Saatchi examples worked well because there was a reason.
4) Above all - be charming. HR people (or even the account execs/managers/planners involved with recruitment) are few. They have other responsibilities to be getting on with than catering for you at this point. An agency isn't Deloitte, with a whole department dedicated to getting the best from you. So be patient, and be nice. As my mum is fond of saying - 'Manners cost nothing'.
And they really don't. The HR person who says yes to you has tremendous power, and even if you get in and on, and are rude to them, they'll do for you. Hell, same applies for receptionists, security guards and postroom folk. They make the agency tick, and you'd do well to remember that, you fortunate bugger.
Obviously, if you are nice, more chance of getting in and on, and you'll be remembered even if you aren't successful.
That's your lot. To those still doubting the point of work experience, if you've had a few unstructured ones, well - just let me put it this way...I got 1 grad interview straight out of university. A year later, with 3 pieces of work experience under my belt, I got to all (barring one) of them.
I've just been sent an email from Jon Steel, who very kindly wrote a Star Story for us last year, about how he got into the business.
This is more a personal reflection on the WPP Fellowship, as he's in charge of seeing the best and brightest get through. So, without further ado, here 'tis:
THE FIRST CUT IS THE DEEPEST
Reflections on a very large pile of applications
JON STEEL, WPP Fellowship Director
Last night, after five straight days of reading and re-reading applications to the WPP Fellowship, I typed the final name onto my list: 108 people, from all parts of the world, who will shortly be receiving invitations to a first interview.
It’s a strange feeling. In part, I am happy because the job is complete, and I know that once again we have assembled a wonderful group of candidates. Yet at the same time I look at the large cardboard box that contains the ‘no’ pile, and wonder, not whether I have made a mistake, but rather how many mistakes I have made. Who have I missed? And what might they have achieved had I decided to place them on the pile on my right, rather than the one on my left?
This year WPP received the highest ever number of applications for our first degree Fellowship program: 1700 give or take a few. Traditionally we have competed not just with other marketing communications companies, but also with management consultants and investment banks. And this year, thanks to the financial crisis, these were looking a little less attractive than normal. To be honest, I had expected that our numbers might rise even further, but many potential applicants have told me that if business isn’t likely to pick up for a couple of years then they are just going to wait, take a gap year (or two) and not bother with applications until things improve.
About five years ago we moved to an online application process, which has generally worked well. This year, working with a new technology partner, we encountered more problems than usual, mostly caused by the incompatibility of new versions of some operating systems. It took one candidate two weeks and a lot of individual technical support to submit her application, but we got there in the end. I wrote to everyone to apologise for any problems experienced, but in the event that the technical issues prevented you from receiving my note of apology… well, we’re all very sorry for any inconvenience that our technical teething problems may have caused. We’ll work very hard to ensure that there is no repeat next year.
Having received the applications, we divided them among twelve current and former WPP Fellows for initial screening. Everyone was given around 150 applications, and I asked them to reduce these to 25. The brief was to identify candidates with high levels of academic achievement, a clear interest in marketing communications, a healthy mix of experience (in life and business), and an interesting perspective on the questions we had asked.
About a week later, I received the top 25 (or, in a couple of cases, 35) from each of the screeners, and a number of late applications that resulted from the technical problems. From a total of around 350, my task was to select a hundred or so for first interview. Most of these interviews will be conducted face-to-face in London or New York, with a few taking place by telephone.
Even though I have been doing this for a few years, I never cease to be surprised at just how difficult it is to distinguish between different applications. It’s much easier to say ‘yes’ or ‘maybe’ than it is to say, ‘no.’ At this stage, everyone has excellent academic credentials and seems to have packed an awful lot into a relatively short life. They are interesting, sometimes witty. One makes a joke about Tony Blair ‘sexing up’ a report on weapons of mass destruction and I laugh out loud. I agree with all the ‘must interview’ recommendations of my screeners, and the ‘yes’ pile grows at an unsustainable rate. I want to meet them all.
Only after reading about fifty applications do I start to get a clear idea of what constitutes first interview material and what does not. I thus have to re-read all of them. I have the first of a series of very bad headaches.
I always start by reading the personal introduction. This has to engage me in the same way that a 30-second commercial has to engage before it can inform. It’s the equivalent of the first conversation at a party. Is this person interesting? Do I like them? Would I like to continue the conversation? I then move on to academic achievement and interests, looking at the choices they have made and judging the balance of analytical and intuitive skills. Finally I read the essay questions, asking whether the applicant has an opinion, whether that opinion is well argued, and how well they write.
Like all recruiters, I admit to prejudices. For example, I will not extend an invitation to a person who does not write well. I hate bullet points. I loathe jargon, and especially the word, ‘paradigm.’ My experience has led me to conclude that people who talk a lot about thinking ‘outside the box’ are generally incapable of doing so. And I believe that if you don’t pay attention to detail in an application, then it’s a good sign that you won’t pay attention to detail in your working life.
This year brought its fair share of basic errors. Applicants wrote about ‘knew ideas,’ ‘pop idles’ and ‘geographical boarders.’ ‘Were’ inexplicably became ‘where.’ In the letter that we asked applicants to write to their favourite teacher, explaining their decision to follow a career in marketing communications, several chose to include that old saying, ‘those who can, do, while those who can’t, teach.’ If insulting their favourite teacher had been a part of the brief then that might have been a good idea. And one guy, quoting me from an article I had written, referred to me as ‘Jon Peel.’ I’ve been called worse, but it really helps to get such details right.
But one person’s loss is another’s gain. As the numbers narrowed I felt inspired and humbled in equal measure. Inspired because of the remarkable things that so many of our candidates have done, and increasingly because they look at the world, and at their lives, in ways that I could not. And humbled because I know that I never would have gained a place on this program myself. At that age, I simply wasn’t good enough. (Maybe that’s still true.)
I’m looking forward to meeting or talking to each and every one of the 108 people who have made it onto my list. They are drawn from every continent on earth, and between them speak a staggering 30 to 40 different languages. A few lucky ones will eventually join us as Fellows. Hopefully we can find places for many more inside our operating companies.
Of course the process isn’t perfect, and I know that in the cardboard box in my office – and even in the larger box containing the applications cut in the first screening – there lie large number of candidates who would, if given the chance, do a great job for us. If you are one of those people, I hope that you won’t give up on this industry, and won’t turn your back forever on WPP.
To everyone who has applied this year, I would like to say a sincere ‘thank you’ for all of your efforts. And I wish you all the best for the holiday season and beyond.
Well, after Sam's denunciation of another agency's graduate recruitment, I thought it'd be a good idea to talk about when an agency does it really well. [NB: I've not been paid, nor do I work for the agency in question. Honest.]
TBWA, take a bow. This pdf is very very good. It should be required reading for anyone contemplating a career in our business. If I was a potential grad, it'd be bloody useful.
I was having a look at the Facebook groups and came across a thread about how a London agency was handling graduate recruitment this year. I wasn't impressed so I blogged about it on my blog. But I think it's important more people read it, so here we go.
We started this journey just under 15 months ago, the whole point of it was to be a place where people could find out about a career in the communications industry - because as fate would have it a significant number of advertising agencies are ridiculously poor at setting their stalls out to potential new hires. They then aim to charge large multi-disciplinary corporations with the mantra that 'we know all about communication'. Ironic methinks.
A year on, we are fortunate enough to still be considered relevant; because of the fact that you guys take the time to read and interact with us - which is awesome, because of the generosity of some of those already in the industry, but also possibly because a vacuum exists that few have attempted to fill. As a result, the IPA have been touch a few times, someagencies have labelled it as recommended reading, others have elevated it to essential - which is nice.
You see hits and links and free lunches are great, but they're not the point.
The point was, and still is that advertising agencies are in the proverbial bucket of crap when it comes to the hiring and retention of the best that society has to offer. The reasons are too numerous for me to dive deeply into for this post, but essentially ad agencies have been dipping into the same bucket for too long, ignoring some kung-fu crazy people, and losing many other potential grads by simply not getting the word out about what an amazing career working in comms can be. People then go into finance and consulting and are miserable. I'm generalising of course. But it does happen. A lot.
This was an attempt to increase awareness about advertising as a career, and hopefully begin to be part of a change in the way advertising agencies recruit and retain junior staff. By and large we'd like to think that it has been a positive influence, agency websites are much more forthcoming about what advertising is as a career and the IPA are really pushing to improve this facet of the industry.
AdGrads is now a funky little community on the web, be it on Twitter, Facebook or the blog itself. So as in any community, people talk to each other about what's going on. And because of this, when an organisation is unhelpful, rude or plain ignorant to a member of the community, word gets around.
Many London ad agencies are recruiting at this moment so there are countless of y'all who are examining applications and websites and hoping to stand out; just as I was not so long ago. Many of you are studying as well as trying to complete obtuse application forms. I'm sure some of y'all have part-time jobs on top of this. It is only your enthusiasm and passion that is driving you. Of course it's a requirement to have these qualities for the world of work, but that doesn't mean that they should be ignored.
So imagine a London agency that claims its goal is to use creativity to solve business problems.
Now picture said agency running a grad scheme this year. Let's say they have a fancy flash website. Where do you think they should put information about the graduate scheme on it? Perhaps in a 'careers' or 'join us' or 'contact us' section? No no, they're far too cool for such silly things. Let's imagine they devote a tiny little link right next to the hugely popular 'T&Cs' link right at the bottom of the page to the future employees of their company. And let's imagine they use the grand font size of oh say 6 for this link.
Now perhaps this would link to a section with a little bit about the agency, what they believe in, why grads should apply, what kind of training they should expect, maybe what they'll earn and other things like further reading that could be done, who to contanct with questions - that kind of thing. That would be useful, wouldn't it? But again no, our agency is perhaps far to busy or lazy to do anything of the sort (and let's remember that agencies such as BBH and Ogilvy HAVE gone to the trouble of doing all of this, and will probably get a higher number of quality applicants as a result). Let's say they just whack up a Word document of the application form. And nothing else.
But you see, advertising applicants - or AdGrads if you will, aren't put off so easily. We know this. So let's have one of them call up our agency to ask them for some further information about the scheme. Wouldn't it be bad if our agency was unable to tell an applicant the nature of the job it's offering? First telling them to look at the form, then claiming to not know what the form actually says, and finally resorting to telling the potential applicant to essentially 'apply and you'll find out everything if you get the job'. Doesn't sound like a very wise and informed bunch of people does it? Maybe not the kind of effort you'd want out of a company where you'd be expected to put your heart and soul into, to do all the little things that senior people may not want to do, but still need to be done.
And perhaps this wouldn't seem like the kind of company that uses creativity to solve business problems. Because it seems to me that this kind of attitude is exactly the kind of business problem that might need some creativity to get solved. Or barring that, maybe just some common sense.
If I could, I would tell the inevitably hard working men and women involved in this state of affairs that the funny thing about living in the age we do is that this kind of behavior, be it with your clients, your employees or your future employees spreads quite quickly. And the little student who you show disdain for may know some more students. And these students may know some people who used to be students, but now write a blog about getting into advertising. And maybe the guy who writes a blog about getting into advertising thinks that maybe this year, you don't deserve to get the best people, because as his dad often tells him "You get what you put in". And it doesn't seem like you're putting that much in this year.
"Power to the people, right on" John Lennon
This is our 100th post. Quite fitting given the subject I think. Thanks for sticking with us.
This is kind of an apology. Cause we've been really shit. Like really. Laziness is gross like something nasty, and I've been super lazy (and so have the rest of the guys) in not updating the blog and replying to emails and all the rest of it. So this is, in fact, an apology to all y'all and a promise that we won't be as shit in the future.
I've updated a bunch of grad schemes with their dates and links on the right, along with links to our posts on interviews, forms and such delightful things. There is more on the way, and we hope to get some more star stories up soon. Also we'll be hitting up universities in conjunction with the IPA pretty soon, if you want us to come visit, let me know.
Also just like last year, we want you guys to tell us your experiences on how applying is going, to be featured in our Diary of an Applicant flavor of posts. If you're interested in writing about how stupid application form questions are, how EVERY agency says they're the best (and they ALL do, and it's impossible for them all to be, so obviously someone's a liar) or anything that you want, send me an email and let's talk.
Graduate recruitment has started and stirred us into some much needed activity on the blog front.
Links to applications and deadline dates are just below, if your agency's hiring grads this year and we haven't got the scheme on the list, send Sam or Will an email and they'll whack you on.
Sam's post on filling out application forms is here. Will's got five top tips for first round interviews for you too.
More advice on 1st round interviews and twolots of second round interviews should also still be of some use to y'all.
If planning's something you've thought about, have a read of this.
As always, comments/questions/abuse are all welcome. Mostly.
