• In-house creative leaders within a mid-sized or large corporate setting
• Leaders directly responsible for managing a creative staff
• Leaders with budget responsibility

Spring 2013
Account Management, Project Management and Traffic Management—Getting It Done
Many creative groups do not include any of these formal roles, some include all three; regardless, everyone is getting it done one way or another. And almost everyone says they could do it better. At this roundtable the group will discuss when to consider formal roles, when hybrid roles are effective, and challenges related to these roles and their related responsibilities.

Dates and Locations

• Dallas, TX: Thursday, May 9 -click here to register Dallas-
  
• Atlanta, GA: Friday, May 10 -click here to register Atlanta-
  
• Bethesda, MD: Friday, May 17 -click here to register Bethesda-
• Chicago, IL: Thursday, May 23 -click here to register Chicago-
• Rutherford, NJ: Thursday, June 6 -click here to register Rutherford-
• Philadelphia, PA: Friday, June 7 -click here to register Philly-           

To request a seat at an upcoming roundtable, click on the above links and direct any questions to Laura Berry 301.280.0314.

Past Roundtables
Managing Creatives (Fall 2012)
It can be challenging for some creatives to work in-house. Not always does the environment or the protocols facilitate the ability to maximize creativity. In addition, corporate standards such as business hours, performance review criteria and dress codes can also stand in the way of a creative performing to their highest potential—whether these are real or perceived roadblocks. Balancing the need for the team to embrace corporate culture with the need for flexibility in order to positively impact job satisfaction and work quality is a consistent challenge for creative leaders. At this roundtable we'll share success stories and brainstorm solutions to the challenge of keeping our creative team members engaged, satisfied and productive.

Affecting Client Behaviors (Spring 2012)
Clients of in-house creative departments can be demanding! There is often not enough time to complete work in a quality manner, too many revisions and too many emails or phone calls that interrupt work. Affecting, and ultimately changing these behaviors is imperative to the success (and happiness) of the in-house team. At this roundtable, we discussed proven techniques to affect client behaviors.

Moving from Order Taker to Strategic Partner (Fall 2011)
Participants have been discussing how many in-house creative departments have evolved from operating simply as a production studio to strategic partners who contribute a high degree of value towards their organization’s goals. The specific identities of these “strategic partners” look very differently from one organization to the next depending on company mission and the creative group’s realistic opportunity to add value. And while the temptation is to equate doing highly conceptual, creative work with being strategic partners, that is only one milestone on the path to being true partners with your clients.

Project Management and Time Tracking Technology (Summer 2011)
Participants have been discussing which systems are the most popular, if they are going with an off-the-shelf model versus a build approach.  They are also discussing the pros and cons of those systems from the users' point of view.  Creative leaders have a lot to consider when using a new or first-time system and they discussed this with their peers.  Many shared best practices with other creative leaders about using a DAM system and shared why they implemented this type of system.

Value Proposition of an In-House Creative Team (Spring 2011)
Participants have been discussing the range of ways that in-house teams can show their value covering topics such as customer service, creative quality, marketing ROI, brand expertise, cost savings, turnaround times, error rates, intellectual property and institutional knowledge. One thing has become clear after listening to the first four discussion groups: there is no single best way to define and show the value of an in-house creative team. A great value proposition is designed to communicate to the unique leaders, culture and business needs of the organization.

Managing the Creative Environment, Team and Individual (Fall 2010)
Creative executives manage the macro and the micro. They need to take into account Company objectives and simultaneously energize their Creative team to deliver. Sometimes these two directions seem to conflict and it’s up to the Creative Executive to find the shared or aligned points on the path to business success. In this CreativeExecs™ Roundtable, we discussed how to balance the structure of an in-house organization with protecting creativity and empowerment for your creative team as a whole and individually.

Structuring the Creative Team for Effectiveness and Efficiency (Summer 2010)
Creative Executives are regularly challenged with organizing and aligning their departments to support evolving business needs while still maintaining high levels of effectiveness and efficiency. It is easy to lose sight of career planning and role attractiveness when engaging in re-orgs and role refinements, but both increase the likelihood of retention which also leads to business efficiencies. Defining how your department measures efficiency and effectiveness and ensuring that your manager understands those measures is key. Our summer roundtable presented an overview of evergreen and new-to-world roles at in-house creative groups, as well as different approaches to organizing in-house creative teams and ways to measure efficiency and effectiveness.

Quantifying and Promoting Your Organization’s Value-Add (Spring 2010)
The discussion centered on how creative executives can help to educate their leadership and their clients on the value of a robust, well-resourced in-house team. We discussed several key themes used to justify a strong centralized team as well as metrics that can help quantify your team’s value-add.