ETHICS: So Simple, a Child Can Get It.

Thursday, July 26th, 2012 | Uncategorized | No Comments

I’ve owned my own company for 26 years. Across the first 22 years of our history, we never absorbed a loss due to nonpayment of services rendered — for any reason — more than $18,000. In fact, the cumulative total across two-decades-plus of doing business isn’t much more than that.

But the last four years? My, that’s a different matter. Since 2008, NOISE has survived bad debts totaling more than a quarter million dollars of profit — and just recently, we’ve been handed another bag of potentially uncollectible invoices in the mid-five-digit neighborhood.

Bad economy? Bad president? Bad luck?

Maybe. No. And luck has nothing to do with this. Interestingly and most disturbingly, I believe the common exception that appears to have become the norm in recent history is bad people, doing bad things and, too often, doing them deliberately — then justifying them under the self-delusion of “oh well, it’s business.”

Our most recent example of this behavior involves more than simply a client of the agency. It involves a local acquaintance and, theoretically, personal friend of mine. In fact, this personal relationship and the inherent trust we placed in it was the primary reason NOISE accepted the assignment. So when CFO Milissa Sprecher and I decided to explain the situation and this individual’s rationalization to our children, we used the following analogy:

“This man asked us to buy him groceries. He asked us to buy groceries for six months. He asked us to buy everything he finds tasty, which by the way is a bunch of food that we couldn’t ever use ourselves. He promised he would pay us. We double checked. We triple checked. We told him exactly what it would cost, and he said okay, and everybody else in his house said okay too. So we went to the store. We put it all on our credit card. We delivered it all to his home. He loved it all. He thanked us. And then, when we asked him to pay us for all that we had done, he said: oops. Guess I made a mistake. I don’t have the money to pay you for all this. I added wrong. I didn’t plan right. But I’m going to keep it all anyway for myself. And you can pay for it. Thank you. Now go away.”

Our nine-year-old daughter’s first comment? “He knew he didn’t have the money.”

Lesson to us all: In business, as in life, do the right thing people. Ethics do in fact matter. It’s pretty easy to get. The nine-year-old sees it. Why can’t the adults?

SOURCE: NOISE

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INNOVATION: Thinking Outside the Cigaret Box.

Friday, June 29th, 2012 | Uncategorized | No Comments

Innovation is a term that’s almost a throwaway today. Every company and every leader stress the importance, value and impact of being innovative — the mantra being, either invent the next great product, or service, or experience. Or die.

At NOISE, we’re no different (although we admit the term is becoming a little threadbare). We, too, trumpet innovative thought and place it on a pedestal, challenging and demanding our very talented staff to not only think outside the box, but turn it upside down and even break it apart if needed. But sometimes, as Ogilvy Asia proves with this anti-smoking campaign in Thailand, being incredibly innovative is pretty simple stuff.

The setup? Children on hidden camera, brandishing cigarets, walk up to adults and ask them for a light. The adult responses are remarkable — for their candor with the kids, and their reactions following the payoff from the children.

It’s creative that’s innovative, powerful and effective — simply. That’s a lesson all who strive to achieve these results can learn from.

SOURCE: NOISE, FoundFolios.com

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