On Finding and Hiring the Right People

It's no secret that I think Bart Cleveland of McKee Wallwork Cleveland is one of the best writers contributing to the Ad Age Small Agency Diary.

His most recent piece is another winner:
Hiring the Right People Is a No-Brainer (Finding Them Is Like Brain Surgery)

A sample from the article:

Time allows you to get to know someone. Time reveals someone's subtle characteristics. Not just negatives, but positives too. I've hired people who I at first believed weren't really the right fit, but over time, I discovered the real person behind the first impression. You must be willing to take your time if you want a staff whose sum is greater than its parts.

Take the time to read the entire thing. As always, it's full of Bart's practical wisdom and a common sense that is too often overlooked.

Technorati tags: bart cleveland, mckee wallwork cleveland, ad age, ad age small agency diary

Idaho Radio News Calls It A Wrap

It's a sad day in the Idaho blogosphere.

After five years and almost 2,500 posts, Don has decided to shutter IdahoRadioNews.com. The final post on the site pretty well sums it up:

I’ve become increasingly busy and don’t have the time to dedicate to this project. I’m certainly going to miss bringing you the scoop - but I won’t miss trying to wrangle the comments.

On a personal note, Don's success with the Idaho Radio News site was an early influence on this site, and for that I say Thank You for all of the hard work over the years.

Technorati tags: idaho radio news

Other Notable Sites - New Addition

There's a new addition to the Other Notable Sites links to the right:

The Underdog Effect

The Underdog Effect is written by Jeff Reynolds of Rizen Creative. He started blogging back in August of this year, and has consistently been publishing new content ever since.

Technorati tags: underdog effect, jeff reynolds, rizen creative

David Armano's Incomplete Manifesto

Here's something that might provoke a few thoughts...

I came across David Armano's Incomplete Manifesto recently, and it struck a chord. If you haven't heard of David, you owe it to yourself to check out his blog, Logic + Emotion. David is the VP of Experience Design with Critical Mass, and is incredibly active in the social media space. He originally wrote this back in June of 2006, and updated it in October 2006.

Here are a few excerpts from his manifesto:

Ask.
Ask questions. Lots of them. Ask the silly ones. The ones that no one else wants to ask. Ask about the bigger idea. Ask about the details. Ask why—but also ask yourself why you are asking the questions.

Be Someone’s Hero.
Everybody needs a hero. We just don’t want to admit it. Find someone who needs a hero. Not your boss—but the person looking for guidance—a word of encouragement or inspiration. Be that hero even if your own heroes don’t exist for you.

Tear Down The Wall.
Corporations thrive by having distinct departments and teams. Collaboration is encouraged—but authentic collaboration rarely happens. Why? Because it’s messy business. People are born with egos. Egos need to be un-learned. Replace your natural born ego with intense curiosity. Do this and you’ll be able to break down barriers, and do great things. When Harley-Davidson wanted to design their first high-performance motorcycle (the V-Rod), they went to Porsche for help. That’s checking ego at the door.

I would encourage all of you to read David's entire manifesto over at Logic + Emotion. Is it going to change your world? No, probably not. But if it causes you to look at things just a little differently next time, then well done.

And to David, I have to say - outstanding work, as always.

Technorati tags: david armano, logic + emotion, critical mass

Advice for Newbies - a primer from Advergirl

Now I'll be the first to admit that there are more marketing-related blogs around these days than I could even begin to keep track of. But when one of the few that I do keep up references another one, I'll usually take a look.

Such was the case this time.

Last week I saw a post on AdRants titled "So You Want to Work In Advertising? Read This First." I was intrigued, so I read further. Turns out it was a reference to a piece written recently by Advergirl, who shared her version of a new employee "welcome kit" so to speak.

Take a few minutes and read through it once or twice: Advice for Newbies: Meet You New Boss. You'll be glad you did -- its a very insightful piece.

Technorati tags: adrants, advergirl

Other Notable Sites - New Addition

After much delay (sorry George), I've added AdScam to the list of Other Notable Sites.

While most, if not all of the content on AdScam is related to the marketing world outside of Idaho, it is worth noting that George lives right here in Boise, and has been known to comment on the local stuff from time to time.

Technorati tags: adscam