Sparks EMEA’s Post

With Cannes Lions International Festival of Creativity in full swing, check-out my latest PRWeek op-ed on why we need to continue to double down on the importance of #DEI at a time when diversity initiatives are losing steam across our industry. The Sway Effect #SwayEffectCannes #CannesLions2024

Bader Rutter President David Jordan 🏳️🌈 also had some interesting thoughts to contribute to AdForum's topic of why the DE&I discussion is slowing, and what could be done to change it. “It’s all about risk mitigation during this polarized political cycle; brands tend to avoid controversy. Rightly so. But smart, forward-looking companies still practice inclusion; there’s just more action and less talk. Hiring practices continue evolving, and I’m seeing more diverse employee teams than ever. At Bader Rutter, we know that bringing your whole self to work makes our product better. Set goals, create accountability, share impact — that’s the road map. Adding diverse talent while building a welcoming environment helps fulfill our employee promise: “To be the place where you can be the person you’re destined to be.” Check out David’s thoughts, and other industry leaders in the full story here: https://bit.ly/3VVYv9c

We recently completed a strategic planning process for the Zeiterion Performing Arts Center Performing Arts Center in New Bedford. When we first met with them, they knew they had hit a wall with the old way of being. The world was still emerging from the pandemic and it seemed like an urgent time to think creatively about what kind of organization they wanted to be going forward. 🌀 To ensure the community’s needs were centered in the process, we invited members of the community to sit on the planning team with members of the staff from various levels of the organization. ❓ We articulated important questions about how to take a tried and true way of approaching their work, and rethink it to ensure the organization was truly of, by and for the community. 💪 They were fierce in their pursuit of a new way, and they were courageous in how willing they were to rethink past practices that did not serve them. We had many courageous conversations in which they rolled up their sleeves and got into the work of reconceiving their organization to deeply integrate inclusion, relevance, access, and their role in serving those community needs. We drew on Appreciative Inquiry to open the process in a positive possibility mindset, we drew on the identification of barriers and the consensus method from Technology of Participation to facilitate these deep conversations and surface the best ideas from the collective. Throughout the process, we elevated community voice to ensure the resulting plan was responsive to community needs. 🙌 The plan that emerged was truly transformative. It speaks to a wholly different organization in the future. The core of their mission (presenting performances) is being reimagined so it will be more inclusive and showcase the full range of diversity in and around their community. They took tremendous risks, and we applaud them and are excited to see how this might shift the audiences who come see their work and feel a sense of belonging at “The Z” in the future. They are also going through a huge renovation physically, so the unveiling will truly be a metamorphosis for this amazing organization. Now they are doing the hard work of living into this strategy, which literally includes a goal to “Unlearn oppressive behaviors and embrace a culture of justice and inclusion.” #transformativeplanning #courageousconversations #inclusivestrategy

It was awesome to be among 250+ storytellers, marketers and creative professionals representing communities and destinations doing great work at City Nation Place in #Houston this week! In addition to partnering with Patience Fairbrother on a talent attraction roundtable and releasing DCI's Talent Wars report, I left feeling so inspired about place marketing and the work that we do at Development Counsellors International. Here are just a few of my favorite takeaways. #CNPAmericas24 #econdev #destinationmarketing   1️⃣ Your brand is not your logo. You must answer who you are and your brand ethos first. 2️⃣ Slow down and do the research. Know that it takes time to listen to your community, talk with residents, partners and stakeholders, and understand outside perceptions. 3️⃣ Your story must be based on authenticity. Your actions create your narrative. Find authentic creators and storytellers within your community and partner with them. 4️⃣ People support what they co-create. Make sure to involve your stakeholders, community and partners. They will then become your community's best ambassadors and cheerleaders.  5️⃣ Collaboration is worth the effort. Building trust among your community partners takes time. Lean into what you're good at and allow partners to bring their strengths to the table too.

🗳 It's election day ☑ and July 4th 🇺🇸 - Get out and vote UK residents or have a relaxing day off from politics if you're in the US. Either way, here's some reading distraction, a round up of the Brands&Culture content in Cannes where we asked the question, what the F*CK is culture? And addressed the concept of how you need to think fast and slow to approach culturally valuable work. It’s clear that both brands and agencies are trying to improve the way they work with culture. Everyone’s agreed on the potential, but the brand and ad worlds are still working out ways to deliver valuable, culture-creating work, where brands build meaningful connections with audiences and/or immerse themselves into cultural scenes with zero friction and maximum impact. Read the full round up on our website, link below, with more to come next week with the Culture@Cannes full deep dive report. #CMOs #Cannes #Brandsnculture #culture

I attended the D&AD festival last week with TwentyFirstCenturyBrand and I initially came away a little nervous about the state of commercial creativity. Some of the judges shared that the creative was lacking this year. One judge noted ‘I rarely saw something that felt new and disruptive’, another talked about how contrived brand and artist collaborations had become. A few of the talks themselves were so shameless in their self/brand-promotion, I’m pretty sure A.I. had written them. Overall, it felt like the festival was not just a reflection of our uncertain times, but of our paralysing anxiety and fear of the uncertainty. I understand the feeling. I’m scared too. And I know it can be hard to go up on stage and offer a truly new perspective when all the balls are up in the air. The talks that stood out to me though were the ones that highlighted how to take advantage of moments like this. The people and brands who saw the swirl, conflict, and chaos as invitations to imagine something better. Like Lisa Smith from JKR and Leslie Sims from Impossible Foods, who repositioned plant based meat to ‘meat from plants’ and demonstrated how challenging dominant narratives in culture can unlock limitless innovation. Or Sinéad Burke from Tilting The Lens who questioned why ‘accessibility’ is even the end goal for brands attempting to be more inclusive. Why can’t products for people with disabilities function and deliver on craft, beauty, joy? Or the great Peter Saville who acknowledged the everlasting tension between commercial and creative, but urged us all to follow the brief, not the rules. We are undergoing a heightened amount of stress and trauma at the moment. These speakers (and many others) sought to remind us that we are all capable of creating awesome things in times of crisis. They instilled in me a renewed hope for the future of commercial and creative excellence, and I’m very excited to see where we go from here. #twentfirstcenturybrand #brandstrategy #creativeexcellence #marketing #commercialcreativity

When creatives from competing agencies come together, great things happen. Kudos to all of the Irish agencies that participated in the Creative Ireland funded session, hosted by Purpose Disruptors in IMMA - Irish Museum of Modern Art yesterday. The purpose of the session was to take time out to collectively reflect on how our industry can reach its true potential. We came together to answer the brief of a lifetime. The brief? Create a (fun) campaign that supports what Irish people actually want, to realise a Good Life in 2030. Our collective client? The year 2030. The insights? Quant & Qual research that helped us understand how Irish people think about the life they want in 2030. The ideas? Outstanding, industry shifting ideas, that will make their way out into the world later this year. Core | Bonfire | Publicis Dublin | THINKHOUSE | Verve The Live Agency | JWT Folk | TBWA\Dublin | Droga5 Dublin | Havas Dublin | The Public House. Excellent hosting and provocation by Lisa Merrick-Lawless, Ceri Jones and Laura Costello. Change feels like this. #industry #climateaction #creativity #goodlife2030ireland

In 2024, Efficacy Media is not just talking the talk; we're actively walking the walk in our commitment to Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion (DE&I). 🚶💬 DE&I is not a mere checkbox for us – it's the very essence of meaningful PR. We seamlessly integrate DE&I into every facet of our operations, understanding that diverse perspectives are the catalysts for innovation and excellence. 🌐  To all partners who share our passion for making a tangible impact, let's unite! Collaborate with us to cultivate an inclusive environment where every voice is valued and empowered. 💪🌈 Together, let's rewrite the narrative. #EfficacyMedia #WalkTheWalk #InclusivePR  #PRandMarketingCollaboration

Creativity is magic Last night, I went to #thecaplesawards ceremony. Fittingly, it was at the HQ of The Magic Circle. There may be 'bigger' awards, there may be awards which result in significant bonuses, there may be awards that are more coveted by certain people. But the Caples stand alone. They're run wholly by creatives, for creatives. This year, Caples Custodian Patrick Collister invited me to join the jury. It was pleasingly international, as were the entries. The judging process was simple and enjoyable. The tech was easy to use. The jury conversations were wide-ranging, thoughtful and persuasive. The voting was based on the work, not the entry. There were no WTF moment when each award was announced. Every single one of them was fully deserved. As Sir John Hegarty said in his on-stage interview with Jury Chair David Harris, "90%, no 98%, of all advertising is shit." So it's right to concentrate on the work that's in the 2% that isn't shit. And the 1% of that 2% that is award-worthy. The work that shows how creativity can solve problems. Whether those problems are commercial, personal or societal. How moments of magic can change attitudes, behaviours, even legislation. We're in tough times right now, and it could take a while for things to get easier. But we're not getting anywhere without creativity. The creativity that builds new businesses. That nurtures fresh talent. That revels in the simple, the smart, the different, the oblique. That makes work fun. That makes magic. #creativity #advertising #awards

🔥 What “how to” are you looking to answer in your next experience? 🔥 The WXO Campfires were created to help experience innovators the world over answer their big “how to” questions – whether that’s how to make money, how to change people’s lives, or ultimately how to build better experiences. So as Season 9 of our digital talks and workshops comes to a close – a series in which we welcomed insights from iconoclast storytellers, digital pioneers, costume designers, operations masterminds and CEOs on topics from making money to making merch – we’ve rounded up some of the key “how to” insights that might help shape your future experiences. Find the top 10 lessons across the Art, Science and Business of Experience that we learned this season at the link in the comments. 👇 Season 10 returns on April 17 - and we’ll be exploring more experience hot topics in the second World Experience Summit this June. More details for both coming very soon 👀 #wxo #wxocampfire #experienceeconomy #experiences #experienceevents #inclusion #immersivelearning #learningexperience #learningexperiencedesign #experiencedesign