DDB’s Post

Every creative should have the opportunity to work at least once with a client as good as Ricardo Malaquias. Learn more about Ricardo in this fine LBBonline - Little Black Book interview.

At DDB... 💚 We encourage being fearless and taking ideas to unexpected places. We work to foster a healthy creative environment where we support and celebrate brave new ideas. 💚 We know how chaotic life can get – both in and out of the workplace. By setting clear expectations and direction, taking ownership of our work, and communicating for clarity, we work to quiet the chaos. 💚 We celebrate and embrace our differences. We share our unique personalities, passions, and perspectives. We spread positivity and make space for everyone to be. 💚 We are encouraged to learn from our past failures, and accept that future failures may happen! We pick ourselves up and dust ourselves off and appreciate the silver living of the positives that come from failing. #DDB #MentalHealthMonth #FourFreedoms  

2023: No.1 in the Middle East, No.9 in the world. 2024: No.1 in the Middle East, No.7 in the world.

Look at any successful team in the world and they probably have these two qualities. Competition to be on the pitch on game day. But also a supportive environment to push each other in training. To be the best. It’s essential to have both in a creative agency. If you want to get to any place worth going. The only way to win as a team is to help everyone player be the best they can be. Because that incrementally makes everyone up their game. Which becomes self-perpetuating. At DDB, we had a policy of hiring talented and nice people for this very reason. By day you competed. After work, you hung out to talk about the days efforts. No ego. Here, it’s creating an environment that is both highly competitive and highly supportive. And it seems to be working. The other day I watched a senior team helping a junior team competing on the same brief. No ego getting in the way, just the desire to help them succeed. And in today’s world that’s a really, really special thing. That’s a creative culture worth building

This week I've spent half a decade at BBDO Worldwide. I could have never imagined that we would have experienced a pandemic, war in Europe and a recession during this time. But despite these challenges BBDO Nordics stand stronger than ever. We've rebranded the agency, grown from 53 to 85 people, increased revenues by 70% and received more than 40 nominations for our work this last year alone. I don't hold a promise of what the next five years will bring, but if I had the opportunity to travel back in time and give that less wrinkly version of myself some advice, then these would be it: Always ask the "dumb questions": Don't presume that if you don't understand something, it is down to your lack of intelligence. It is more likely due to a problem in communication. So set the example by daring to ask the obvious question. Because if you don't understand something, chances are that the people around don't understand it either. By asking the "dumb questions", you make it ok for everyone to do the same. Which fosters a culture of learning, over a culture of appearances. Learn to love your problems. You won't be able to create an environment where problems don't arise. The world is far too complex. So instead of getting beat down every time a new problems arise, realise that your role is not to ensure problems don't arise, but to make sure they don't grow too big. So learn to love your problems and make them your work. Eat the frog early. My father in law Terry told me this and it is still the best leadership advice that I've received. Just like eating a frog, no one likes the idea of having to make a tough decision. I have had many sleepless nights these last five years, but not in one instance has a problem become better because I didn't make a decision. So deal with the uncomfortable early. Be an elephant, not a crocodile. David Sandstrom told me this years ago. The idea is to have big ears, a small mouth and to use them in that proportion. What I've learned is that good executive decisions are the results of many different inputs. In essence, the more angles you have, the more informed your decisions will be. So make sure to listen actively, often and everywhere. That way you can stay consistent in your leadership. Don't be afraid to show your weaknesses. Don't try to live up to an idealised idea of what a professional leader should be like. Because in the real world no one wants to work with a perfect leader. They want to work with genuine leader that cares, blemishes and all. So don't be afraid to show your weaknesses, even it it shows that some late afternoons you become a human labrador. We not me oriented. The success of BBDO will never be down to one individual. Rather a team of talented people who come in to work everyday hell bent on creating inspiring work! So be ruthless with hiring people who are both nice and talented. Then lead by leaving your ego at the door and work hard to make other people shine. Ps. You guys rock!

Onto the next.

Well done to all.

𝗘𝘃𝗲𝗻 𝘁𝗵𝗼𝘂𝗴𝗵 𝗜 𝗵𝗮𝗱 12.000 𝗰𝗼𝗹𝗹𝗲𝗮𝗴𝘂𝗲𝘀, 𝗜 𝗻𝗲𝘃𝗲𝗿 𝗳𝗲𝗹𝘁 𝗺𝗼𝗿𝗲 𝗮𝗹𝗼𝗻𝗲. When I joined DDB in 2013, I expected to be warmly welcomed by a community of peers. To finally feel a sense of belonging and be part of a bigger mission. What happened was the opposite. I never felt more alone. I was the odd one out. The misfit. The thorn in the flesh. They didn't understand what it was I did. But it needed to be done nonetheless. Clients were willing to pay for it. They didn't see any value in what I was building. They even publicly questioned it's existence. Yet I was making more margin than any other team. "𝗙𝗶𝗿𝘀𝘁 𝘁𝗵𝗲𝘆 𝗶𝗴𝗻𝗼𝗿𝗲 𝘆𝗼𝘂, 𝘁𝗵𝗲𝗻 𝘁𝗵𝗲𝘆 𝗹𝗮𝘂𝗴𝗵 𝗮𝘁 𝘆𝗼𝘂, 𝘁𝗵𝗲𝗻 𝘁𝗵𝗲𝘆 𝗳𝗶𝗴𝗵𝘁 𝘆𝗼𝘂, 𝘁𝗵𝗲𝗻 𝘆𝗼𝘂 𝘄𝗶𝗻." This has been my motto for years. It inspired me to keep going. To build my own tribe. To take ownership over my career. And to be the change I wanted to see in this world. If this is you. Please know you’re not alone. Many of us are fighting the same battles, feeling the same pressure. 𝗟𝗲𝘁’𝘀 𝗯𝗿𝗲𝗮𝗸 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝘀𝗶𝗹𝗲𝗻𝗰𝗲. 👇 Share your experience below. Let’s start a conversation. Let’s support each other. Or, DM me if you need someone who gets it. Let’s connect. ------------- Hi👋! I'm Anneli, on a mission to bring the social back in social media. In September I'm launching Social Frontiers. A strategic leadership program and an empowering community to support social media professionals to advance in their career. You can apply via link in bio or send me a DM to find out how to join the Tribe.  #SocialMediaManager #SocialMediaStrategy #CorporateSocialMedia

When you are setting out to do something truly different - there is no roadmap. 🗺️ Rachel Allison set out 3.5 years ago to set a new standard in an industry that had become tired and cookie cutter - entirely independent with no hidden safety net. 📍 Building an agency (in a challenging climate) with an agile and refreshed method that delivers impactful results, that shows real value to brands - with a human first approach takes A LOT. 😅 That is what makes the recognition so profound. Beyond proud of Axe Saw and the force for change that is Rachel.🌿💫 The seeds that have been sown are really starting to shoot 🌱💚 #agencyoftheyear #proawards #storytelling