leadership

THG @SXSW: Using an “Army of Interns” to Kick Your Business into High Gear

We have a bumper crop of Hired Guns presenting their ideas at next month’s SXSW Interactive. Over the next few weeks we’ll be profiling them, so that you can get a taste of their ideas — whether or not you’ll be making it to Austin yourself.

Marshalling Your Army of Interns
Tuesday, March 13, 3:30
Presenter: Larry Smith

Your Twesume
(your resume in 140 characters or less):

Mine is just six words: “Tell your story, that’s my story.”

Why did you want to speak at SXSW?
I’ve learned so much in the years I’ve gone to SXSW, and I’m thrilled to offer any knowledge I can back. This year I’m leading a “Core Conversation.” It will be a nice change of pace: rather than doing a panel or fancy presentation where I’m the “expert,” I’ll be leading a discussion in a room of very smart people sharing tips and experiences together.

Gunsworthy3 people like this

Career Rehab: What You Can Do Now to Get Paid Later

It’s still the beginning of the new year, and you’re determined that this is the year it all comes together. You’re going to lose that last five pounds, go on that international vacation you’ve always dreamed of, and get the raise or promotion you deserve (how else are you going to pay for the trip?).

The path to the first two goals is pretty straightforward. Every gym worth its salt is running a “New Year, New You” promotion, and a trip to any bookstore will overwhelm you with the latest diet books. While you’re at the bookstore, skip over to the travel section and pick up a guidebook for the country of your choice and keep it at your desk for motivation.

For the last goal, here are six building blocks for strengthening your career in 2012.

1) Build your network. There’s a common saying that “you need to build your network before you need it,” and it definitely holds true. Waiting until you need a new job and then suddenly contacting everyone you know is akin to waiting until the night before a big test to begin studying.

Gunsworthy5 people like this

The Leadership Journey: A Picture Worth a Thousand Words, and Hours of Discussion

Leadership is a JourneyThey say that a picture is worth a thousand words. And that a journey of a thousand miles begins with a single step. And that leadership is not a destination . . . but a journey. I’m not exactly sure who “they” are, but regardless of who said what, there’s something moving and memorable about the power of a beautiful, colorful visual image like this one — and a simple, thought-provoking metaphor.

In my leadership workshops, as well as in the NYU graduate course I teach on “Transformational Leadership and Team Building,” we spend almost an hour discussing — and pretty much an entire semester referring back to — the single, powerful metaphor that we refer to as “The Leadership Journey.” “An hour on one simple picture? How can that be?” you might be wondering.

Gunsworthy12 people like this

3 Things Newbie Managers Need to Know

We’re glad to welcome to the blog today the digital strategist Danny Flamberg, who writes about marketing, advertising, and culture on his blog, Manhattan Marketing Maven. In his new series with us, he’ll be covering the tools, tricks, and ways of thinking that managers must have to help their staff do the best job they can.

Most first-time managers have specific tasks they need to get accomplished, and often their first job is to change their mindset from “How can I do this?” to “How can I help my team do this?” They must work to change their actions and attitude from that of an individual player to an effective coach and supervisor.

To succeed at this, focus on the three crucial “W’s”:

Gunsworthy5 people like this

How to Succeed on Panels and Q&As: Make Yourself a “Point” Guard

I give an annual presentation for members of a religious group about how to ensure that their faith is presented fairly in the media and in the rest of society. What they most want to know is what to do during panel discussions, TV interviews, and other unscripted scenarios in which participants aren’t in control and are sometimes taking unfriendly fire. Here’s what I tell them….

Gunsworthy4 people like this

How Not to Succeed: 5 Fun Ways to Make a Meeting Last 2 Hours

One of the most rewarding aspects of being a manager is the power to waste other people’s time. A great way to do this is by transforming short meetings into endless morale-sucks in which nothing is accomplished and big chunks of the work day are blown.

Here are some helpful hints for pulling this off effectively:

1. Do it on short notice! Impromptu meetings disrupt whatever work people were already doing. Everyone loves a surprise, especially in the middle of a busy day. An unplanned two-hour meeting not only shakes up the same old boring routine, it teaches patience, discipline, and time-management skills. Your employees will thank you a thousand times over.

Gunsworthy6 people like this

Bullet Points: Managing Perfectionists; The Habits of Bad Hiring Managers

Gunsworthy2 people like this

Avoid Timelines, Plan Accordingly, and Change Everything: How Agile Product Managers Work With Management


One major misconception about Agile product development is that there’s no long-term planning, and that everyone just does that they think should be done in the moment.

This couldn’t be further from the truth. Successful Agile shops are ones that put a strong focus on strategy and know exactly where they want to go. Being Agile means that you outline your high-level business goals first, that you think about the six-month and twelve-month plan, that you focus on problems over solutions, and, ultimately, that you abandon timelines and allow yourself to adjust priorities as you go.

Unfortunately, this is where most executives struggle; “How can you not have a timeline? When will things get done? How will we plan?” It’s understandable that executives want to know how time and money is being spent, and timelines and Gantt charts have their place in certain kinds of businesses: see my previous post on Waterfall vs. Agile approaches. But in the world of web development, timelines equal compromise, and compromise equals failure. When you commit to the dates on a timeline, you might as well let everyone know right off the bat that you will either miss the date, or that you will compromise the product to hit the date.

But what’s the right way to do long-term planning in an Agile environment so that executives (and everyone else) feel comfortable with the plan? The answer is a road map based not on deadlines and wants, but on priorities and needs.

Gunsworthy12 people like this

Bullet Points: When (Not If) Your Employees Move On

Gunsworthy0 people like this

Three Great Ways to Get Sued for Discrimination After an Interview

"I wanted to let you know that this company does not discriminate against short people."Now that you’re a big, important manager, you’ll probably be called on to interview job candidates. Despite what the experts in Human Resources and Legal say (cough — who cares — cough), the whole issue of what constitutes legal and illegal lines of questioning is blown waayyy out of proportion. Some people are just too uptight.

Nonetheless, here are a few things you might want to say to reassure job candidates that you’re “in sync” with HR and Legal on those touchy topics:

Age

I just want to let you know that we wouldn’t mind hiring a really old person such as yourself. Your generation has done so much for our country, particularly in World War I. The fact that you even showed up today is pretty amazing, when you think about it. I mean, your kids are probably on Social Security by now, right? Ha-ha. No, but seriously — I know you probably didn’t even get that joke, and that’s okay, because I know you’re a little slow mentally. I just want you to know that we’re willing to sacrifice productivity a bit by hiring you. Can I call you Grandpa?

Gunsworthy3 people like this
Page 1 of 3123

Product Management, User Experience, Information Architecture, Interaction Design, Usability Testing

Project Management, Program Management, Production, Content Production

Animation, Art Direction, Creative Direction, Corporate Identity, Flash Design/Dev, Graphic Design, Web Design

Content Strategy, Editorial, Copywriting, Copy Editing, Research, Blog Outreach

Brand Management, Business Development, Sales, Product Marketing, Event/Conference Planning, Promotions, Marcomms, Corporate Comms, Direct Marketing, E-Marketing, Public Relations, Market Research

Account Management, Account/Brand Planning, Media Strategy, Communications Planning, Media Planning/Buying, Social Media, Search (SEM, SEO), Web Metrics & Analytics

Web Development, Front End Development

[no subcategories]

Thanks for your interest in our talent! We'll be in touch soon.

An error occurred and we weren't able submit your request. Please try again.

We have but one over-arching rule for comments: Do not add to the chaos of the universe.

  • This blog is devoted to developing a point of view around the Future of Work through the lens of the digital creative class. It offers some of the best career writing out there to help you get ahead as well as some brand new bloggers livin' the dream and tellin' it like it is. We encourage you to use the comments to drive conversations to the next level, bounce ideas off our bloggers, challenge them, and engage in dialogue with your fellow readers.
  • Disagreement is fine. If one of our bloggers gets your goat, say so, but elevate the conversation. Substantiate. Strive to teach. Your words might actually change someone's opinion. Don't just rant.
  • Sign your name. Anonymity makes you a wimp.
  • If you're just commenting to get your handle out there, please be clever about it. Or witty. We'll delete unimaginative self-promotion.
  • We'll also likely delete comments that are vulgar, inadvertently or maliciously off-topic, spammy, creepy or sloppy.