NEWS & OPINIONS

After 10 weeks of lockdown, new research conducted by Question & Retain, the insights agency, has revealed how employees are coping with working from home (WFH) and their fears about a return to the workplace. Conducted over a five-week period (4th April – 12th May) 2500 employees in the marcomms sector completed an online questionnaire (Pulse Check) covering key WFH areas including: effective communication/leadership, work/home life balance and connectivity. An addendum to the study (conducted 9th – 14th May) is a candid snapshot of how employees are feeling about a return to work. Employee Engagement Business leaders have long grappled with the juggling act of running a business and communicating effectively with their people – and yet the new WFH challenges are suggesting a positive shift. 57% of employees polled feel ‘well-connected’ to the leadership team and believe there is ‘sufficient and clear communication’. Of the remainder, 41% are positive but a little more equivocal stating that communication is sufficient and clear ‘for the most part’ – with only 2% indicating a lack of communication. “As business leaders the new working scenario has forced us to assess and re-think all aspects of running a business” says Ian Henderson, CEO, AML Group – one of the agencies that participated in the study. “The main focus, quite rightly, has shifted to the people in the business, in particular their mental health and wellbeing, and effective communication is an enormous part of that.” "66% of WFH employees aged 25 or under are suffering signs of mental ill-health" Employees have revealed that one of the most pressing issues relating to WFH is a disconnect from colleagues. Of those surveyed, less than half (48%) stated that they feel sufficiently connected. “Camaraderie and physical togetherness are a big part of most people’s working day – especially in an agency environment” says Fenella Grey, chair at Porter Novelli, London. “We are by nature a sociable species and working remotely and in isolation is a big challenge for many – especially younger workers. However, business has proved over night that it can adapt and move towards more progressive and flexible ways of working to accommodate wider needs.” Work/life Balance Work/life balance has raised issues for a number of employees with no clear division and work/life lines blurring into evenings and weekends. Employees with families are also struggling to find a satisfactory balance with a number of respondents struggling to ‘switch off’ at the end of the day. Less than one-fifth of employees surveyed seem to have cracked the balance code with just 16% stating that their work/life balance is ‘excellent’. "97% of employees have stated that they have reservations about returning to work in the office" Mental Health The study has revealed that 66% of WFH employees aged 25 or under are suffering one or more signs of mental ill-health with 1:5 suffering extremely high and low moods or social withdrawal. Respondents talked about being ‘overwhelmed with workload’ with work hours ‘consistently longer’ and expectations that can be ‘mentally draining’. Older employees (45+) seem to be coping better with less than half (40%) showing any signs of mental ill-health due to WFH. Returning to the office 97% of employees have stated that they have reservations about returning to work in the office with 82% nervous about the logistics of getting there. The prospect of packed tubes was cited as a main concern with a number of respondents indicating that they would consider cycling into work. On the positive side, WFH has also given employees a taste of a more flexible way of working – with a shout out to business leaders to ‘consider the possibility of WFH a few days each week.’ Talking about the impetus behind the research Annabel Dunstan, Founder and CEO, Q&R says: “As soon as lockdown was confirmed I twigged that there could well be a massive knock on effect in terms of mental health and wellbeing for those having to work from home. We devised a relevant and topical Pulse Check and invited agency leaders to get involved so that we could quickly assess the impact in the early weeks. It is clear the younger workers are the most adversely affected. It takes good communication from leadership including regular 1:1 check-ins and opportunities to feedback, to support employees in the new world we find ourselves in”. *Q&R conducted the anonymised research among 2,500 employees working from home for UK based marcomms agencies. A ten question Pulse Check survey was designed to seek feedback on mental health and wellbeing with the emphasis on encouraging respondents to be as candid as possible. Respondents were able to then share their reasons for selecting a particular answer, giving Q&R a quantitative and qualitative data set. Data was analysed for sentiment and key themes identified. The research was conducted between March 23rd and May 15th 2020, following the announcement of lockdown due to COVID-19. Annabel Dunstan is Founder & CEO of Question & Retain www.questionandretain.co.uk

As agencies start to plan how they will re-open their office doors, David Regan of global law firm Squire Patton Boggs explains what needs to be considered. Following Boris Johnson’s announcement on 10 May, employers are now considering how they will get their staff back in the workplace – and finding that there are at least as many vexed issues in bringing employees back as there were in closing the office in the first place! It is not just a question of employees pitching up on the day – there are lots of practical issues which businesses are likely to encounter in the return process. The purpose of this article is to set out some of the common issues businesses will face and some ways of approaching them –there are of course no 'right answers' in this situation; rather businesses will need to carry out a nuanced review of all the facts before coming to a decision which suits the business and, in some cases, each individual employee. Health & Safety The recent Government guidance has reminded businesses of their underlying health and safety obligations. Whilst in the public perception these obligations were previously satisfied by little more than sticking up HSE posters, putting "Caution Hot!" signs by the coffee machine and putting striped tape across any steps or protruding power leads, these obligations are of course significantly more extensive in reality and require proactivity on the part of an employer, not least in the form of a risk assessment. Given we are in the grip of a global pandemic caused by a single virus AND the Government guidance on returning to work requires employers to carry out a risk assessment, one might have thought that the HSE would have provided a sample risk assessment tailored for COVID-19, but while it states this to be the case, on closer inspection this is simply a standard risk assessment and is not COVID specific (although the HSE for Northern Ireland has prepared one that is). "What is an acceptable risk for one business will be unacceptable or impracticable for another." So what might businesses need to consider as part of any such risk assessment? Who might be harmed? (staff, visitors, cleaners, contractors, drivers, etc). Potential ways of minimising or controlling the hazards (handwashing, cleaning, social distancing, PPE, temperature testing, wearing of gloves). What can be done to assist employees dealing with these hazards? (ensure there are handwashing facilities with adequate supplies of soap, water, paper towels, ensure that cleaning takes place with appropriate thoroughness and appropriate regularity, redesign offices to reinforce social distancing where appropriate, monitor employees symptoms). What can be done to encourage employees to comply with their obligations? (regular reminders to wash hands and of public health advice, check to ensure cleaning protocols, enforce social distancing through appropriate measures in the office). Practical issues around restarting the office (has the air conditioning been switched on recently? Has the water been run to reduce Legionnaire's risks? Do the lifts or other machines need servicing?, etc). Clearly, each risk assessment needs to focus on the specific circumstances of the business. What is an acceptable risk or a reasonably practicable preventative measure for one business will be unacceptable or impracticable for another. However businesses need to start thinking about these issues now if they are to prepare properly. Mental Health Another risk factor which needs to be considered (indeed one which may well warrant its own risk assessment) is employees' mental health – there are any number of issues which may be affecting this currently, but employers would be wise to consider the effects of: coronavirus (which creates uncertainty which can affect employees mental health); lockdown (which can increase a sense of isolation for employees, exacerbating or leading to mental health issues); poor management (it being harder to manage effectively remotely); medical issues (whether personal or family); financial issues (whether due to furlough or pay cuts, or worries about potential future redundancy); productivity/ performance concerns (employees may feel under extra scrutiny as they are working remotely and managers cannot see how hard they are working). Returning to office-based is of course not a panacea for these issues. In fact it will likely lead to further concerns – for example, many employees may feel uncomfortable travelling to work on public transport. There has also been a rise in obsessive compulsive behaviours during lockdown – this too may impact employee mental health on their return. Who should come back? Once businesses have decided to come back to work and what they can do to protect their employees, the next question is who do you bring back to work and how quickly? Do you want to: bring back all of the employees at once (which is unlikely to be suitable for all businesses, particularly where social distancing cannot be maintained)? bring employees back in shifts to reduce occupancy (helping manage COVID-19 risk, but potentially impacting productivity) ? open the office with a skeleton staff so it can be used wherever absolutely necessary, but to continue to allow/require employees to work from home? (leading to risks of a confused workforce – guidance needs to be clear to avoid mixed messages) Again, there is no definitively right or wrong answer to this; it is something which will depend upon the needs of each business. However, it may help employers to consider the following: which roles they need in the office first; whether this is client sector specific; has the technology that has enabled working from home been effective; should any office-based employees who have been furloughed be brought back first, before other employees are brought into the office; how will communications be maintained where some employees are in the office and some are not? A special set of questions arises for those employers who have furloughed staff – do you bring them back from furlough and, if so, how many and when? Equally, if you have rehired any employees simply so they can benefit from furlough, at what point do you intend to (re-)terminate? Again, there are no easy answers, although in the case of furlough some of this may come in the next few weeks as we learn more about the tapering of the furlough scheme. What if you don't need all the employees? Many employers will regrettably need to consider whether their commercial outlook justifies retaining all of their staff. If not, and there is no longer an option to place staff on paid furlough, then it might be necessary to consider redundancies. Of course, where 20 or more employees are potentially at risk of redundancy, this requires collective consultation, meaning that you need to factor in the necessary time to carry out a consultation process. This is particularly problematic where some of those employees who are at risk of redundancy are presently on furlough and the employer is trying to minimise the financial exposure to those redundancies. If all else fails, be transparent and open As can be seen, the process of seeking to return to what will, for now, be a new normality, will not be easy. There are certainly more questions than answers at this stage. However, provided businesses treat their staff with openness, honesty and transparency, then whilst there will undoubtedly be teething issues, the hope is that operations will resume – if not as smoothly as before, as least as smoothly as possible. David Regan is a Director at Squire Patton Boggs dealing exclusively in labour and employment law

The pandemic has brought with it a massive spike in anxiety and stress such that the UN has warned of a global mental health crisis. Marc Caulfield talks honestly and openly about Adland's responsiblity to its people. Everything has changed but nothing has changed I was very excited about 2020. My business was really starting to take off and then BOOM, COVID-19 strikes. Without exception everyone I know has suffered in multiple ways. I have many friends in Adland still and they are all feeling it. The one thing that has not changed and never will is people. As we try to make out the Government’s slightly wishy-washy measures to release the pressure on lockdown, now is the time for genuinely putting your people first. Yes, that means before clients! People drive great work. So many agencies talk about people first, but if we are all honest, we know from some that is bullshit. Much like Mental Health awareness week, this pandemic shouldn’t be the one time that your people’s wellbeing becomes front of mind. Now is the time for genuinely putting your people first. Yes, that means before clients! Quite simply everything has changed but nothing has changed in terms of an employer’s moral, ethical and legal duty of care for their employee’s wellbeing. The terror of change Adland, for a communications business where there is a plethora of laptops, smart phones, and tablets, has never been great at embracing remote working. This has obviously changed since 23rd March. Excuse me whilst I punch myself in the face for saying this, but this is now the ‘new norm’. When this inevitably starts the shift from WFH back to WFW I believe we will see unprecedented people issues coming to the fore. Some people will love WFH and others will hate it. Some can do it, and some cannot. The key driver here is CHANGE. The very word sends people into a spin. Human beings find change so difficult because of some basic human subconscious reactions. Simply put we all find change stressful in varying degrees. Most of us have some understanding of the ‘fight or flight’ system that the body subconsciously activates in times of stress. I will not go into the psychological or physiological effects that Adrenaline and Cortisol have on our minds or bodies but suffice to say they play a significant role in our fear of change. An example here is the way people often repeat things that haven’t worked before. Do the same things again in relationships that have failed before. I think we can all relate to ourselves, our families and our friends making similar mistakes over again. We have all done it. We promise we will learn each time, however more often than not (certainly in my case) we repeat the same mistakes again and again. Why on earth would you do that?! Simply because what you know sometimes feels ‘safer’ than what you do not. Change throws all of this up in the air. Will the change really be better? This is what is in play in the workplace now. There will be untold personal problems that have come out of the lockdown that people will not necessarily want to discuss Employers really do need to push wellbeing, particularly mental wellbeing. Most employers will be focusing on the state of their business commercially, understandably, but people MUST come a very close second. For all the positive stories we read about families coming together there will be many families that this level of isolation will feel like imprisonment. There will be untold personal problems that have come out of the lockdown that people will not necessarily want to discuss at or with work. Employers will need to find the balance between getting their businesses back on track commercially and ensuring their people have the mental capacity and health to cope with the pressures of trying to get back some semblance of normality. This may involve some serious mental health training for managers / directors; we are not talking a box ticking exercise; we are talking about real cultural shift. The view through a legal lens To put a legal, and therefore financial, reputational, talent retention & recruitment lens on this, the last recession saw a 50% increase in employment tribunals claims. COVID-19 has certainly had such a brutal effect on the UK economy we can draw comparisons. Speaking to a variety of law firms over the past few weeks this is a commonly shared view. There is a heady combination of opportunity, tribunal fees being abolished from July 2017, and some suspect use of the furlough scheme along with knee jerk / panicked cost cutting. The last recession saw a 50% increase in employment tribunal claims Already employment lawyers have seen a resurgence of claims under Section 44 of the Employment Rights Act 1996; this is where employees perceive an imminent and serious danger at work and reports this to the employer. Any detrimental treatment here can result in a claim. Likewise, Section 100 of the same act deals with dismissal in such circumstances. This should be seen as a warning sign for Adland, no longer an area of business that avoids the normal rules of HR! This used to be a badge of honour, time has moved on. They say every cloud has a silver lining; if this pandemic galvanises Adland into action around their most important asset, their people and their wellbeing, then maybe it’s not all been bad. So, what should we all be doing / thinking? People have been through unprecedented change; be mindful of this fact (as above). Accept that all of your people are different; one size certainly won’t fit all. As a leader you may well have taken lockdown in your stride, don’t assume everyone has. Inevitably there will be change coming in working practises, how will this affect bricks and mortar costs and in turn senior management financial stress? How will you monitor WFH effectively? Empathy is key; you have no idea how being in lockdown has affected people – relationship damage, loneliness, abuse etc. The most important thing is to talk to your people, how are they feeling, what do they want to do after lockdown is lifted? There is an opportunity to come out of this gaining huge respect from your people, if handled well. If as a leader you feel you want to change your working practises then communicate this; this is the ideal way to get people to open up. Every Mental Health workshop we have run where a leader has opened up about their mental health has been a giant step to cultural change and openness. If you would like to discuss how Demolish the Wall can help, please get in touch: - Marc.caulfield@demolishthewall.com 07766 235500

With teams unable to work face to face, maintaining a strong company culture is a new challenge for most agencies. We have been speaking with Mizzy Lees from Mr. President about how the agency has adapted to ensure that they stay connected under lockdown. Mr. President is an agency known for its company culture. We are a close-knit team and we care deeply about our employees’ experiences at work. This is one of the reasons that my role of People Director exists. My job is to balance the needs of the team with those of the business (amongst other things). We were one of the first agencies to close our offices and start working from home because of Covid19. It no longer felt safe for the team to travel across London, and since we knew our IT infrastructure was capable, on the 12th March we emptied the fridge, turned out the lights and locked the doors. Part of my role is to monitor the collective energy within the team with the aim of keeping it positive and focused, with a shared ambition. I worked out pretty quickly that we needed to rethink the way we worked to achieve this, so here are some of the things we have been doing to keep the team connected in lockdown. Keep up the usual routine Pre-lockdown, we started the week together with the company wide Monday morning meeting and eased ourselves into the weekend with Fun Friday from 4.30pm. We were keen that lockdown didn’t stop us from coming together as a group, so we keep both of these events going via Google Hangouts. It’s a great way to check in with each other, to find out what everyone is up to and what we need to achieve that week. The power of video Using a video conference platform with a grid view is 100% worthwhile. There is something quite powerful and motivating about seeing the faces of the full team coming together. You get a much better sense of team spirit. Throw in a team quiz on a Friday and you also have structured social time too, without any of the chit chat social awks. My pyramid of comms I have a brilliant team of line managers. I work very closely with each of them to ensure that those in their team feel supported, heard, are pushed and have a clear path for progress. We anticipated the increased need to monitor workload and well-being during lockdown, so they each have more frequent individual and team check-ins, not just about work, but also to ask, ‘how are you?’. This includes those on furlough leave who are still checked up on weekly. In turn I regularly check in with each line manager to see how everyone is doing. If any flags are raised, I can follow them up. It’s a good system, but only works if we keep all the conversations going. Know your point people There are roles in the agency that connect with everyone. Whilst they might not be having the ‘how are you?’ conversations or monitoring workload, they are able to gauge general mood. I have a regular check-in with these people too to gauge how the agency is feeling. Again, if any flags are raised or anyone has any concerns about the team, I can follow them up. Pick up the phone I love WhatsApp and Google Chat. They make life so much easier. But sometimes you really do need to pick up the phone and have a proper chat to check-in. You can tell a lot more about a person from the tone of their voice. They will also reveal more about how they really feel when they have the space to talk. I seem to spend a lot of my time on the phone at the moment. In recent weeks I’ve learnt that keeping the team connected in lockdown requires a real commitment of time and energy. It’s a necessity not just for businesses to operate, but also for each individual’s health and well-being. And whilst lockdown will be temporary, working remotely and flexibly is here to stay. So, the changes I am making now don’t feel like temporary solutions, but how we are adapting for the future working world. Mizzy Lees is People Director at Mr. President

In these unusual times, it's easy for our normal habits to be broken and as a result for our health to suffer. We asked Health Coach Michelle Flynn for her advice for life under lockdown. During this time we should be focusing on our health more than ever. Whether you have already had the coronavirus and are thankfully recovering or if you have not had it, at least as far as you know, boosting your immune system is critical for our long term health and wellbeing. When it comes to living a long, healthy, happy life there is nothing that can impact us more than implementing good habits. But with so much advice out there (especially at the moment when everyone has become a health expert) we often do not know where to start, so we buy the diet books, download "Couch to 5k" and then end up doing nothing at all. I am going to make it easy for you, here are six core principles of healthy living that most effectively add years to lives, and life to years. Sleep Sleep is key to all health and wellbeing. Are you getting enough? You need to be getting 7–9 hours sleep a night. Our bodies all require long periods of sleep in order to restore and rejuvenate, to grow muscle, repair tissue and synthesize hormones. Food Eat whole, real foods and avoid processed foods. If you do this not only will you never have to count calories again but more importantly you are significantly boosting your immune system and reducing your risk of all chronic disease. Movement Regular physical activity at moderate intensity will assist weight control as well as reduce cancer risks, simply this means using your one exercise a day slot to walk 10,000 steps. If you are an athlete then of course train hard but over exercising can actually do more harm than good. Stimulants Sorry you are not going to like this one (especially as I know at the moment we are probably turning to these more than ever) but we all know the more you reduce caffeine, alcohol, smoking the better. Stress Stress is an inevitable part of life, but you can improve the way you respond to stress and avoid / change some of the situations that create negative stress. To cope with the stress that you cannot remove there is nothing more powerful than a daily breath practice as it scientifically changes the chemistry in our body. It is as simple as inhale for 4, hold for 4, exhale for 8, repeat. Love Loneliness is one of the biggest causes of depression and we are all feeling more lonely than ever before, even if we are isolating with those we love. So connect with your family and friends in whatever way you can… virtual quiz nights, dinner parties over zoom or a good old fashioned chat on the phone. So rather than saying “I will get healthy” it is time to say “I AM healthy”. And if you are ever unsure what to do then ask yourself “What would a healthy person do?” If you act like a healthy person long enough you will become one. Michelle Flynn is a Certified Health Coach. Find her at www.michelleflynncoaching.com

Continuing our Business Unusual series we look at how new team members can be welcomed into a business under lockdown. It may seem untimely, tactless even, to be talking about hiring new staff when so many agencies and other firms are laying people off because of the global pandemic. But sometimes, through accident or need, it happens. Ian Henderson, CEO of AML Group, talks us through their recent experience. We’re a few weeks in to the new normal of remote working. The move to working from home was a double jolt to AML, having just moved into a shiny new space at the Tea Building in Shoreditch then moving out again a couple of days later. It was just long enough to find the nearest coffee shop, bag the best locker and make sure the new tech was working. Fortunately, it worked beautifully thanks to our excellent IT support team. Virtual server access, new phone setup and everyone on Microsoft Teams meant we were ready for the crisis even before it happened. Working with clients around the world meant videoconferencing was nothing new; and we even managed our first remote pitch during the few hours we were in the new building. Our new FD, Sheena Shah, joined AML from Fallon only a few days before. Sheena just about had time to learn peoples’ names before being plunged into full crisis management mode, looking at smart ways to protect the business and look after our people, while giving our clients the service they are still needing from us. AML does simple ideas for complicated businesses – advertising, content and digital strategies for organisations in finance, technology, government, professional services. These tend to be sectors where the current crisis demands more communication, not less; we know we are very fortunate to be less exposed to sectors like travel or events. It means we’ve had a busy few weeks – so busy, in fact, we decided to go ahead with a senior creative hire despite every instinct saying the opposite. Starting a new job at home in a global pandemic feels pretty surreal, especially when your first brief is a pitch! Creative director Ross Garden and I met Dan Wright, a senior creative writer who had spent some years working at Lida and M&C Saatchi, a week or so before the crisis. We liked him, and his track record seemed exactly right for us. We have a terrific ‘family’ of freelancers who often work with AML but we felt strengthening our in-house team would make client continuity easier while working remotely; plus we didn’t want to lose Dan, so we went ahead with the hire. Dan himself was surprised – he’d thought the lockdown would change things and only started believing it would happen when AML MD Tim Lloyd turned up on his doorstep with a brand new laptop – leaving it a safe distance away, obviously. The next day Dan was using it to join the all-hands morning meeting on Teams video – feeling very foolish and still wondering if it was some April Fool’s Day prank. It wasn’t – an hour later he was being briefed on a pitch, and soon found working as half of a creative team over video link just as productive as being across the same desk. Dan tells us he always feels anxious during a pitch, and that was the same; and there were inevitable glitches in communication – working apart meant Dan couldn’t have the same degree of control over every aspect of the work as he was used to and some things couldn’t be fixed by walking across the office for a chat. The pitch went well and everyone was buzzing afterwards – including Dan, who said the experience felt good but mentally exhausting. The agency knocked off early for Easter with a visit to the AML Arms, our virtual pub where everyone gets together for a gossip over a drink. We announced a couple of well-deserved promotions, Dan and Sheena joining in the congratulations as fully-fledged members of the team - even though Dan had never physically met anyone. But maybe that’s just normal, in the new normal. You can read Dan's thoughts on starting a new role under lockdown at https://www.advertisingweek360.com/starting-my-new-creative-job-during-a-global-pandemic/. Ian Henderson is CEO of AML Group

NABS is the support organisation for the advertising industry. They support everybody in the industry, from junior execs to CEOs, helping them with their wellbeing so that they can thrive. We’re living in challenging times. Many in our industry will be feeling anxious or scared. People are already talking to NABS about their worries about job loss, finances, and how to manage working and family life at the same time. Despite the unpredictable world we currently live in, there are a few simple things you can do to support your wellbeing. Follow the official advice. Do what you can to keep safe, and this will give you a little peace of mind. The government guidelines along with instructions from your employer should be your main source of information here. Restrict your news consumption. You want to be informed but not inundated; too much news could make you stressed or frightened. Choose when you’ll check in, and only use trusted sources. Get help and information from the NABS Knowledge Hub. Free to use and full of practical and helpful advice, NABS’ Knowledge Hub brings together everything you need for support during the coronavirus outbreak, from understanding furlough to managing anxiety and navigating life as a working parent. Communicate. This is huge. While isolated and working from home we need to make an extra effort to keep in touch with our colleagues. Map out with your teams how you can support and work with each other, and don’t expect things to work first time. This is a new situation for all of us. It’s OK for us to make mistakes and try new ways of working. NABS Advice Line team ask this question to everyone who calls: “What do you most need?” Ask your colleagues the same question and you’ll discover how you can meaningfully support each other. Mind movement. Calm your body and mind with breathing, mindfulness, yoga or exercise. Try doing something every day to support your physical and emotional health. From meditation apps to yoga videos on YouTube, there are lots of wonderful free resources online that can help you. Read more of NABS’ advice. We’ve shared our advice across the industry press on how to cope during the pandemic. Do have a read for more tips in MediaTel, Little Black Book, Campaign and MarComm News. Working parents will like this honest and informative piece in BITE. Call NABS. We’re ready to help you with our support services: NABS Advice Line 0800 707 6607 or email support@nabs.org.uk Wellbeing and career coaching via phone and Skype: https://nabs.org.uk/how-we-can-help/career-support/ Masterclasses (group coaching to be delivered online): https://nabs.org.uk/how-we-can-help/masterclasses/ Newsletter: sign up for weekly advice, support and updates in your inbox Connect with us on social on Twitter, LinkedIn, Facebook and Instagram. Our services are free and you can use them as many times as you like. NABS is the support organisation for advertising and media. We’re here for you, so please get in touch with our Advice Line on 0800 707 6607 or email support@nabs.org.uk Annabel McCaffrey is Head of Support for NABS.

In a world gone topsy-turvy, what does this mean for new business? We asked agency growth expert, Robin Bonn, to weigh-in on agency business development in the current climate. If there’s a single secret to winning new-business, it’s empathy. And now’s the perfect time to be more client-centric and do the right thing. Without downplaying the severity of the COVID-19 crisis, keeping spirits up is important. So I was heartened by some reassuringly British piss-taking on the socials; a friend sarcastically praised the heavens for finally finding that ‘guide to working from home’ that we’ve all been sorely lacking. In fairness, the agency that produced it was probably well-meaning, if a little late to the party. It’s certainly way more defensible than idiots failing to switch off their automated spam sequences (‘Hi Robin, I know you’ve ignored my first five emails, but who at Co:definery is responsible for sock purchase and sock repair?’). And of course the COVID-crassness award must be reserved for any tone-deaf bellends trying to self-servingly newsjack the horror. No, I don’t want to read ‘why a pandemic is the perfect time to invest in branded pens’. Anyway, all this highlights an important question for agencies - how should you be doing new-business right now? A risky time to sell There’s a fine line between welcome help and unsavoury opportunism. And given that we’re all a bit frazzled, if even slightly badly expressed, a genuine motive can easily be misconstrued. So the stakes are high, with plenty of jeopardy. Looking like an arse is one thing, but it’s far worse to add yet more stress to another human being. That’s why my best advice is to pause and reflect. Ask yourself if you’re truly helping. Do you have genuine permission and authority to offer this? Would you welcome your approach if you were in your prospect’s shoes? Measure twice, cut once. Have permission to help The easy win here is relevance. Stuck at home, we’re all doubly dependent on Ocado, Amazon, Netflix etc. And it’s the same in business - unprecedented times are creating acute demands. So if you have authority to help, then do it - just choose your words carefully. Good examples I’ve seen include leadership mentoring, free resources for performance coaching and guidance on making complex decisions. This movie matchmaking service is another empathetic idea that meets simple human needs - be that combating loneliness or just entertaining your kids. Another practical tip is to start with your current clients. It’s a great opportunity - not just to be useful, but also to learn how to be useful. They already trust you, there’s rapport in place and you know their priorities. So as well as being at less risk of being misinterpreted, you can also offer softer support. But don’t email - give them a ring. Running a remote pitch Another question I’m being asked is how to run a pitch when the world’s in lockdown. If you’re lucky and demand remains, then this is a great problem to have. Firstly, remember that the principles of mobilising, briefing and rehearsing your team haven’t changed. Your existing process, milestones and performance indicators still apply. Of course you’ll need to make nuanced changes. Developing your response and, in particular, discussing subjective feedback will take longer when you’re not face to face. Lacking so much body language means you should check and double-check that your precise intention has come across. As George Bernard Shaw said, ‘the single biggest problem in communication is the illusion that it has taken place’. Presenting in unfamiliar conditions When it comes to pitch day, there are obvious challenges. For example, reading the room is way trickier via video conference. Even knowing who’s speaking can be a challenge, depending on the software in play - especially if you’re suddenly having to use the client’s platform (pro-tip: don’t). So the old cliché of ‘failing to prepare means preparing to fail’ has never been more true. You’d like to think the client would forgive some clunkiness, but anticipate and prepare like never before. Case in point, rehearse like mad. Do a dry run with a remote audience. Think about stage management. Who’s handling client questions? How will you avoid multiple voices weighing in and a cacophony of ‘no-sorry-after-yous’? Appoint someone to lead on the new playing conditions. It’s their job to learn how remote presentation experts do it. Adopting a few novel gestures and conventions could differentiate your pitch, remove awkwardness and help you perform well. How to NOT pitch remotely Beyond the practicalities of running a WFH pitch process, don’t forget that it’s still one big diagnostic. The client’s weighing you up and you’re assessing them too - not least to infer your chances of success. For example, walking away when you’re not going to win is something few agencies find easy. We’ve all heard the immortal line ‘I know we won’t win, but we’ve come this far…’. Now is the perfect time to develop this skill. Yes, a win would be doubly valuable right now. But there’s also more risk. From protecting fragile morale, to the unique opportunity cost of wasting this relatively free time, think extra hard about whether the client is serious - about the process, but particularly about your agency. Ring them. Will they take your call? Are they definitely going ahead with the work? How clearly can they articulate your potential fit? Are they willing to discuss adaptations to the process, like extending deadlines or adopting different formats? This kind of probing should already be second nature, but if you’re ever going to raise your threshold for agreeing to competitive pitching, then do it now. Use your time well I mentioned time - all of a sudden, it’s at far less of a premium. Many of us haven't been this unburdened by deadlines since…. ever. It’s a massive opportunity to invest in your future, nurture your soul and do some good. What’s that article you’ve been meaning to write? Maybe finish reading that business book? Perhaps finally plan that thought leadership initiative? Can you support your local pub like Lucky Generals? Maybe set-up a WhatsApp group to tell your neighbours when Sainsbury’s have got eggs in. It sounds trite, but get a hobby. Don’t sit hunched over your screen fretting 24/7 - I’ve just started drawing again for the first time in 30 years (am no better, sadly). Help your fellow agency leaders too. The likes of Agency Hackers, MAAG, BIMA and Agency Collective are facilitating free-of-charge spaces where agency communities can talk, joke, commiserate, learn and share. None of this is rocket science, but it’s all productive. And more importantly, it will help you adapt to the new normal when we get past the immediate crisis. Selling is helping For now, obviously the most important thing is everyone’s health. And hopefully the Government’s measures will help us all weather the economic storm. But at the same time, despite these unprecedented (definitely word of the year) events, you can keep the sales and marketing engine running - as long as you proceed with caution. By picking up the phone, carefully testing your offer and maintaining a complete focus on your audience’s needs, you can - and should - keep on ‘selling’. And once this crisis passes, perhaps agencies will realise two things - firstly, in difficult times, selling is helping. And secondly, it always was. Of course being compelling and persuasive is important, but fundamentally you’re just helping get clients from A to B. And that is built on empathy. So good luck for now. And if you want to stick the kettle on and call for a natter, just shout. I’ve got a brilliant guide to remote working that I can share. Robin Bonn is the founder of Co:definery - a management consultancy for agencies - and a columnist for Marketing Week. You can also find him on LinkedIn and Twitter.

When you're creating a DM piece (or an ad), there are rules of best practice to follow which hopefully make your work more likely to be seen by the target audience. The same applies when you're writing a CV. Scanning Twitter last night, I came across a tweet from Richard Shotton (@rshotton) about eye-tracking. Whilst this research refers to Direct Mail, I felt that much of it is translatable to CV writing. “Detailed text is often overlooked” Research shows that on average a CV is read for around 7 seconds. Chapter and verse about every campaign you’ve worked on is really not necessary. Nor is a half-page long personal statement. In fact, probably the hardest CVs to read (and therefore the most like to be overlooked) are the ones which appear to be just a block of text. Break it up with white space and remember that… “People generally focus on headers” Take the opportunity to use each role as a header and make it clear what role you had and where. By and large in agencies, careers are somewhat linear (junior, midweight, senior, Director or AE, AM, AD, BD, CSD) so just your job title gives the reader an expectation of the responsibilities you have had. “Front pages receive far more attention than back pages” Nearly two and half times as much. So put the most pertinent information on the first page. Typically this will be your most recent role but not always. We recently worked with a candidate who was looking to change careers yet the relevant study they had undertaken was halfway down the second page. Simply moving this information higher up the CV helped to secure an interview. There is however, one piece of advice we don’t think applies to CVs. Boxes and images Like it or not, most recruiters and in-house talent teams will use some form of recruitment software to manage and share applications. Nothing screws up the formatting of a beautifully laid-out CV like uploading it into one of these systems. Text boxes and tables in particular can be magically transported to another part of the document making your CV practically illegible. A professional-looking headshot is fine but not mandatory. Most recruiters will be keen to connect on social media and will see what you look like there anyway. The logos of every agency you have worked for (and/or every brand you have worked on) add colour to the page but can make your CV a busier document. Brand “You” A CV is about marketing you. It’s a brand you should know really well so bring it to life. However, as with any marketing remember that the objective is to grab attention and to drive action. Make it easy for the reader to see why you’d be brilliant for the role and how to contact you. For an idea of a CV that is more likely to work, you can do worse than have a look at the advice from The Ladders. Good luck!

"I’m on the cusp of promotion but have been told I’m ‘not quite there yet’. My boss says my work is excellent but has suggested that I need to work on my self-promotion internally. I’m not really sure how to do this as I’m not a natural show off. To be honest, it also really frustrates me that I’m being overlooked over other people who seem to play the game better. The work should speak for itself! What would you advise?" (M/w from top 10 advertising agency) We asked Marc Caulfield, advertising industry expert and CEO of mental health consultancy, Demolish The Wall, to weigh-in. Here's his take on the situation: I feel your frustration! This is often used as a financial trick to appease the FD or should I say CFO nowadays. However, I suspect the underlying issue here is your boss and their position in the business. If your boss truly feels your work is excellent but your promotion is being blocked, I suspect their boss doesn’t rate you as highly as your boss does. The unfortunate thing in the ad game is perception and ensuring the right people see you doing the right things. Don’t forget most people’s perception is their reality. Agency leaders are not always the best at the craft skills; indeed, generally aren’t. However, they can be brilliant businesspeople, brilliant leaders, brilliant commercially etc etc. Certain agencies or positions in agencies do require more ‘front’. Your situation maybe because your client would be upset if you came off their business or weren’t so involved. This is why sometimes brilliant client people don’t make the most senior positions. If you are prepared to give this a go, the way to do it is to decide who is blocking your promotion and who needs to be more impressed by your work. Find reasons to show them; ask to do an all agency show and tell; run a lunch and learn etc. However, ask yourself is this sustainable for you as an individual? Does it fly in the face of your work ethic and belief system? My advice is don’t pretend you are something you aren’t, it never works long term and can be detrimental to your mental health. If they won’t give you the recognition you deserve then maybe you need to offer your skills elsewhere. I would also be concerned for your boss, they clearly don’t have the clout or respect of their boss.