【前回】「SXSWの良さはMIXの文化 SXSWチーフ・プログラム・オフィサー ヒュー・フォーレスト氏インタビュー」はこちら
今回は、「シリコンヒルズ」とも呼ばれる開催地オースティンで、いま勢いのあるクリエイティブエージェンシー5社の訪問レポートを紹介します。
スモールエージェンシー・オブ・ザ・イヤーに輝いた会社の働き方
Greatest Common Factory（グレーテスト・コモン・ファクトリー）
昨年、米国アドエイジ誌のスモールエージェンシー・オブ・ザ・イヤーに輝いたGreatest Common Factory。わずか10名で数多くのプロジェクトに関わる同社の働き方について、パートナーでストラテジック＆クリエイティブリードのジョン・トラハー氏に聞いた。
少数精鋭で多才なスタッフ
効率的により良いクリエイティブを
「MAKE THINGS BETTER」というスローガンに込めたのは、「クオリティの高い、数多くのクリエイティブを、より効率的に生み出し、より良い結果を出す」との思い。トラハー氏は「クライアントにサービスを提供するために、大きなチームを編成する必要はない」と言う。「私たちのスタッフは多才なタレントを持っていますから」。
背景にあるのは、前職の大手広告会社時代に抱いた問題意識だ。大人数での打ち合わせが多く組織も部門ごとに分かれていて、「自分がクライアントに貢献できている実感が得られにくい」と感じていた。同社では、最初のブリーフィングから関わるスタッフ全員が出席し、エージェンシーもクライアントも一緒になって課題や目標を話し合う。ブリーフィング後は、なるべく早く課題を特定し、クライアントにアイデアや解決策を提示することにより、レビューや話し合いの機会を確保する。
トラハー氏は、「時間イコール品質ではない、人数イコール品質でもないことをエージェンシーは認識しなければいけない」と言う。プロジェクトごとクライアントと協議する予算の組み方も、大手とは違う発注の仕方ができると評価されている。「必ずしも多額の予算をかけなくても、良いもの、良い結果が得られる方法もあると知らせたい」。
スモールエージェンシーであるからこそ、経営の透明性担保には気を配る。「経営戦略を全員で共有する機会を定期に設け、利益があるときには全員にボーナスを支払う」。パートナーでビジネス＆プロダクションリードを務めるカレン・ジェイコブ氏は「スタッフが自分の興味の幅を広げて、新しいスキルを開発していくことをサポートしている」と話す。今後のビジョンは、20人ごとのオフィスを5つ開くこと。少数精鋭のチームの今後が楽しみだ。
The Workings of the “Small Agency of the Year”
Greatest Common Factory
Interviewees：
Karen Jacobs, Partner, Business and Production Lead
John Trahar, Partner, Strategic and Creative Lead
In 2017, Greatest Common Factory was named Small Agency of the Year by Ad Age. Their name comes from the phrase “Greatest Common Divisor”, a reference to finding the right, interesting content for the audience you need to reach.
“Make Things Better” is the agency’s corporate platform. They described the meaning of this platform as “producing abundant, quality creative work, more efficiently and with better results. We don’t feel these elements are incompatible. We use our resources efficiently to produce quality content.”
John explained, “We look at our work from five vantage points when we’re moving forward with a project – aiming to produce something simple, multi-faceted, direct, entertaining, and transformative.” He elaborated, “We staff with talented people that don’t need a big team in order to deliver for the client. Our staff is multi-talented. ”
John cited problems he observed while working for larger advertising agencies as the inspiration for this technique. He felt that, “There were frequent meetings with lots of people. The agency was separated into different departments, and it was hard for me to feel like I was actually making a contribution to the client.” So he felt that much more motivated to try different approaches, and explained that “I wanted to impart the message that an agency can provide both high-quality, creative work and productions that bring great results without necessarily asking its clients for huge sums of money. Because if the agency doesn’t explain this clearly, the client will end up spending a lot more money than it needs to.”
In order to achieve that goal, the agency is very particular about the way they deal with their clients. All necessary staff members must be in attendance from the very first briefing. The agency and client talk through the challenges and the goals specific to the project. Then the agency pinpoints the client’s issue immediately following the briefing. The agency quickly presents ideas and solutions to the client for review and discussion, and then the team narrows it down to what it will execute.
John also stated that the agency doesn’t create for any particular channel: “We aren’t partial to any specific type of media. We try our best to come up with the most suitable type of media for each case. We don’t submit a timesheet in our bill to the client. We charge an agreed upon amount that is appropriate for the project. Longer hours don’t necessarily lead to greater work, and adding more staff to a project doesn’t necessarily produce higher quality work.” Clients appreciate the fact that placing a work order with Greatest Common Factory is a wholly different experience from placing an order with a larger agency.
In response to a participant’s question about the agency’s policy on staff training, Karen said, “We try to create a safe workplace environment where our employees have the chance to try out new things. And we support our employees as they widen their interest base and develop new skills. Management should have a generous understanding of each employee, and should understand that proper management entails taking a long view of the direction of the company, and incorporating a plan that nurtures employees.”
Greatest Common Factory also shared why being a small agency with only ten persons distinguishes it from other agencies. For one thing, there is the security that business will always be conducted in a transparent way. For example, John explained, “We regularly hold meetings where we share management strategies and other tactics with all of our employees. And when we make a profit, we always pay out bonuses. Since everyone is working their hardest, we give everyone a bonus, not just select individuals.” With regard to his vision for the future, John said, “I’d like to eventually expand to the point where we have 5 offices, each staffed with 20 employees.” We look forward to seeing how much they can grow with a team that’s comprised of just a select few.
