SchoolOfDavid : Open Source Learning

About six months back, at our small agency we started a learning program called SchoolOfDavid. We/I haven't been very regular but yesterday managed the 4th such session.

As always it was fun! This time it was different in two refreshing ways.
(a) It happened outside the agency, at my place and Candies - the quiet little eatery in Bandra! and (b) It had a truly diverse gene/talent pool...

One of the structural changes I have been passionate about in the agency is the formal partnership between the creative and the other guys(planner/ servicing). As against the norm of a department-led-silo-thinking/working! The topic of this session was 'Dinking' and was about the need to do 'boundaryless-thinking-n-action!

After a short gyan session by me, we got down to a role playing exercise loosely based on Edward De Bono's role playing exercises...

We had 3 teams. Each took on the role of a new company - M&M and Google(X2) and then went on creating a new agency...

I wasn't at all surprised at the strategic-n-creative spark of the young turks in my agency. I have tapped into it many-a-time this last one year! What they may lack in experience, they more than make up in sheer 'fresh-n-bold thinking'!

Some other musings:
1. We must tap into the 'talent pool' at the bottom of the pyramid more often...Fresh pairs of eyes is stupid to ignore!

2. Open-source problem solving can work wonders. In the past month, I have used it to create a campaign for a major client of ours! If the people at the top are committed, open-source-working is not very difficult to DO.

3. Informal sessions create culture. Formal ones don't.

4. To quote Yogi Berra - "You can observe a lot, just by watching."

5. I find in the digital age that we live in, 'worldviews'/ 'experience' is not directly proportional to age...

6. A remarkable way forward might be to create a 'shadow board' of young guys to get in the freshest ideas on board.

7. How you do the learning sessions is as important as what you do in them.

In case anybody is interested in conducting informal work-shops to create a 'creative play-ground' in their organisations, please feel free to get in touch with me!

cheers
M\
P.S. A special thanks to Russell(without whom SOD4 would have been highly unlikely)for baby-sitting young Neo!!

Another School. More Fresh Thoughts

I have written about SchoolOfDavid, the open-source learning lab at David. Read more about it here...Post our merger, the school resurfaces under the brand name - Incubates.

I took my first session in Delhi earlier this week. Curious new faces! Generally got the impression that they liked this introductory session on 'what is account planning!'.

But the best reward was this e-mail I got from a Sr. AE today...
Hi,
Was listening to this song from the film life in a metro "in dino". there's a line in the song which says

jab mile thodi fursat khud se karle mohabbat

i think it's an awesome line and these days most of us have no time for ourselves...too apt for today's generation.
Let me know what you think of it.

I too think it's a nice line/feeling...
I am never surprised at the level of understanding and creativity inherent in the young minds of our industry, even as we berate the lack/ exodus of talent. But what heckles me no end is that most often we fail to tap into/ train/ motivate this reservoir of talent...

Hope, we will be able to make a small difference...Okay got to go. Got to pack my bags for the Goa Adfest...