• Give Your Clients What They Want

    July 15, 2015

    • by Emily Foster, IHAF

    Does the title of this blog frighten you? Don’t worry. I’m not going to tell you to make the logo bigger or to infuse neon green into your corporate brand palette. Beyond hearing “yes” to the sometimes-random requests they make, do you know what clients really want? They want to know that the in- …

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  • The Early Bird Gets the Discount

    July 08, 2015

    • by IHAF Staff

    It’s the most wonderful time of the year…at IHAF, anyway! That’s because we’re in the midst of planning our biggest event of the year—the IHAF Annual Conference & AwardsShow. The IHAF program team is hard at work lining up the best speakers, the best breakout sessions, and most opportunities to …

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  • Stimulating Creativity

    July 06, 2015

    I was approached to write this blog on stimulating creativity from the point of view of an external agency creative director “out in the field.” Like anyone else confronted with this sort of challenge, I immediately Googled “stimulating creativity.” That brought up a treasure-trove of writing on …

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  • Creativity Born Out of Structure

    June 29, 2015

    Yes, you read the title right. The all-important and often overlooked way to stimulate creativity is through structure.

    Technology, process, organizational design, and purposeful management trump latte machines, foosball tournaments and in-house yoga classes when it comes to encouraging innovation. …

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  • Idea-Generating Techniques for the Desperate

    June 22, 2015

    Here’s a general rule of thumb regarding idea-generation techniques: they’re clunky, dorky and time-consuming. Oh, and they don’t work. You reluctantly resort to one when you're under the gun for an idea, then end up wasting valuable time that leaves you even more frustrated and desperate and …

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  • The Crystal-Clear Winner

    June 15, 2015

    • by Emily Foster, IHAF

    Each year, numerous winners leave the IHAF Awards Show with accolades in hand. Only one team, however, walks away with the coveted, crystal Best of Show trophy—the clear stand-out among all of the work submitted that year.

    The Best of Show winner is chosen at the end of a day-long process where …

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  • Building a Creative Environment

    June 08, 2015

    When I was in third grade, my mom and I ran into my teacher (a grim, severe drill sergeant) in the cereal aisle of the grocery store. I still remember how long it took my brain to recognize Mrs. Strictman. Her face was familiar, but foreign in that environment.

    The grocery store was all joy and …

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  • Let Them Lead

    April 21, 2015

    One of the keys to leading a successful organization is recruiting and nurturing new leaders within your agency. Finding and cultivating people who could give us “more legs on the stool” became one of the most gratifying achievements for my core group of senior leaders and for me personally.

    In …

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  • Leading Teams by Leading Culture

    April 13, 2015

    Every organization has a culture built on its behaviors, habits, values and, most importantly, the collective energy of the people that comprise it. In my experience, strong culture is foundationally rooted in the ability to attract and retain the right people with the right energy, the right sense …

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  • Three Keys to Leading Strong Teams

    April 06, 2015

    On paper, leading a strong in-house team is easy. All you have to do is: 1) hire the right people, 2) establish processes that enable them to work efficiently and productively, and 3) keep everyone (your team and your clients) happy. Unfortunately, doing all three is difficult.

    What’s more, even …

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