query: How is speaker 2 feeling

response: I'm good too

context: <1>Hello</1><2>Hi</2><1>How are you?</1><2>I'm good, how about you?</2><1>I'm good too</1>


query: Does Maria feel that things on the data team are going to be okay?

response: Yes, Maria's is little worried about future of the data team.

context:
WEBVTT

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<v Benjamin Novak>Hi everyone.</v>

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<v Maria Campbell>Hi all.</v>

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<v Ji-hoon Park>Hey.</v>

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<v David Abelman>Hi.</v>

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<v Emily Chaplin>Hi guys.</v>

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<v Matthew Martin>How’s everyone doing?</v>

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<v Heather Horvath>Hi.</v>

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<v Hurrit Alberty>Hey all.</v>

00:00:03.897 --> 00:00:09.897
<v Benjamin Novak>I think everyone’s here. I really look forward to these meetings. It’s important to take time out and explicitly talk about the future and the direction we want the company to go in. Hoping to get some feedback on what’s happening now and ideas for the future. Loose agenda topics in the chat. Also happy to talk over whatever is top of mind for people.</v>

00:00:09.897 --> 00:00:17.487
<v Maria Campbell>Thanks Ben. For me the biggest concern right now is timing. We know that things are going to change. We’re going to hire and maybe promote and reorganize and have a lot of changes. But when? And in what time frame? I worry about everyone being able to get work done while these big shifts are happening.</v>

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<v Ji-hoon Park>That is important. If people are moving around or being given instructions to train new employees they’re going to be even busier than before. The people who do the most work already and are top performers are going to have more stress.</v>

00:00:25.537 --> 00:00:32.263
<v David Abelman>Timing for expansion is never perfect. Even when we know that we have slow down periods we have people out of office and some projects that are still on fire so there’s never a good time for big changes. It will be challenging for us all but we need to make sure that it’s as easy as possible for the people doing the work.</v>

00:00:32.263 --> 00:00:40.123
<v Emily Chaplin>I like Maria’s point about the time frame. Like do we want to onboard all the new people at once and have a ton of chaos but have it over quickly or do we want to bring on people and reorg in stages so there’s chaos for longer but it’s not so dramatic.</v>

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<v Matthew Martin>I don’t know if that looks different for different teams. This will hit writing and maybe data and graphics hardest. Heather what do you think?</v>

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<v Heather Horvath>The writing team is overworked but are really strong overall. The writers have already brought it up that when new people come on it will be a lift and they all want to help out. So we might partner new folks with established people on projects an then I would do a little less in terms of training.</v>

00:00:51.551 --> 00:00:55.205
<v Heather Horvath>Darius brought up the point that we might want to divide up the team by specialties or some other factor. Have cohorts or groups.</v>

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<v Hurrit Alberty>Would you put people in charge of those cohorts?</v>

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<v Heather Horvath>Not necessarily. I can’t ask someone to be in charge and have leadership duties if they don’t get a promotion and a raise.</v>

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<v Heather Horvath>If we could do promotions and raises for a different leadership structure, that would be great. If not, I would use this kind of organization to better manage small groups. It would focus communications like people working on best and fabric cam as opposed to the really different goals and concerns for people on north wind and prose wear.</v>

00:01:07.570 --> 00:01:11.418
<v Benjamin Novak>If there were the option for promotions to manage cohorts, who would you choose and how quickly do you think the changes could go into effect?</v>

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<v Heather Horvath>That’s easy. Helen and Darius. They would be ready to manage cohorts immediately. They’re both so good. And if we bring on new writers and or contractors they would be able to help get everyone up and running easily. No question.</v>

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<v Maria Campbell>I completely agree. We have a really mature group of people to lead writing who can roll with changes and keep things in order. Not all departments are going to be able to do that but the writers will be fine.</v>

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<v David Abelman>From what I’ve seen that’s mostly because of your leadership Heather.</v>

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<v Emily Chaplin>It’s definitely because of Heather and how well she’s managed the team especially over the past year.</v>

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<v Matthew Martin>We won’t have that easy a time with data or graphic design I think.</v>

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<v Ji-hoon Park>Definitely not with graphic design. We have had to rely more on vendors as the workload has increased. Mohammed could take on more responsibility but I don’t think Ed or Jen could. And we’re so understaffed that the time we would risk getting behind on project work.</v>

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<v Benjamin Novak>If you could hire three people today would it help? Do you have anyone in mind?</v>

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<v Ji-hoon Park>I would take two of the contractors but we would have to search for someone with specialization in mobile app design. It’s the one skill set that we’re really missing. Everyone on the team can do some of it but not to the level we really need. We prioritized other skill sets in the past. We could also use more animation experience and maybe someone who is really good with AI.</v>

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<v Benjamin Novak>Okay that’s something I didn’t know. Good call out. Can you grab time with me next week to give me a quick overview of specializations and your thoughts on what we have and what we need?</v>

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<v Ji-hoon Park>Of course.</v>

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<v Benjamin Novak>Matthew Jake tell me about data.</v>

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<v Matthew Martin>We’re struggling. For different reasons.</v>

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<v Hurrit Alberty>Yeah. We don’t have enough data scientists or other analysts to begin with. And there has been some tension on the team. Matt.</v>

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<v Matthew Martin>Hmm.</v>

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<v Matthew Martin>So I think that data science is a special case in terms of reorganizing and getting some new people. We need more extensive changes and have talked to Suresh about that.</v>

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<v Hurrit Alberty>It’s in progress but it will take a bit of time. I think everyone here is familiar with the issue.</v>

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<v Matthew Martin>I think we should sort of leave this out right now. Too many things happening and we want to be careful.</v>

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<v Hurrit Alberty>It’s.</v>

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<v Hurrit Alberty>It’s something that we will deal with. Things will get better.</v>

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<v Matthew Martin>Exactly. Let’s leave it at that.</v>

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<v Benjamin Novak>Okay then. Speaking of change let’s talk about some of the ideas people have been kicking around lately like the expansion of roles we want to see at the company.</v>

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<v Heather Horvath>Oh good. I was hoping we’d get into this. </v>

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<v Hurrit Alberty>Yeah. I think this is really smart. Some companies have done a lot of this and some aren’t doing it at all.</v>

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<v Benjamin Novak>Yeah. People are all over the place when it comes to ideas like this.</v>

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<v Maria Campbell>I think what it comes down to is that no one really knows what’s going to work or what the right answer is. Or what the right skill sets are to have at an agency today. But the world has changed a lot in a very short time. And also some things have been changing for years and are just hitting a tipping point.</v>

00:02:51.568 --> 00:03:05.361
<v David Abelman>That sounds right. Like data has been ruling everyone’s lives for over a decade. But it was data for the sake of data. Quality took a nosedive and we’re all just choking on it. The idea of data as a part of a larger structure to make decisions is the future I think.</v>

00:03:05.361 --> 00:03:24.271
<v Emily Chaplin>In terms of what that means exactly it’s hard to say but I think we can afford to be innovative. I’d love to see a psychologist, a sociologist and maybe someone with an interdisciplinary background that has diversity and bias training in communications. That one will be tricky. Those people want to go to nonprofits or academia. They usually want to avoid advertising like the plague.</v>

00:03:24.271 --> 00:03:39.077
<v Matthew Martin>:If we find the right person I think we can make a compelling offer. If it’s an issue of ethics or not being able to work on things that are meaningful we can be really accommodating. Suresh absolutely loves some of the volunteer and pro bono projects people have taken on. It’s one of the reasons he’s thinking of expanding the hiring more than we technically need.</v>

00:03:39.077 --> 00:03:44.847
<v Heather Horvath>I do think we offer things that aren’t really standard in the space and we should be proud of that.</v>

00:03:44.847 --> 00:03:54.390
<v Hurrit Alberty>And having people like that to analyze data and collaborate with the writers and clients and everyone could be very valuable. It’s never been harder to be in advertising. People are frustrated with being sold to and want different experiences.</v>

00:03:54.390 --> 00:04:11.230
<v Benjamin Novak>That’s the real issue isn’t it. It’s a tough market. Everyone wants something different but we still see trends just not the way we used to. And different people who look at data and the world in different ways are going to be able to give us insights that might be able to set us apart from other firms.</v>

00:04:11.230 --> 00:04:22.183
<v Maria Campbell>I think people with those skill sets would also be able to help us navigate social media and publicity incidents better. And advise clients on how to handle them better.</v>

00:04:22.183 --> 00:04:29.772
<v Ji-hoon Park>I agree. But would staff in more traditional areas feel like their roles are less important or their voices aren’t heard if we go in that direction?</v>

00:04:29.772 --> 00:04:35.898
<v David Abelman>I think most of our staff would be interested. Some people may feel.</v>

00:04:35.898 --> 00:04:43.366
<v David Abelman>Have feelings about it but if we integrate everyone well and emphasize teamwork and roles they should be able to get past it.</v>

00:04:43.366 --> 00:04:48.647
<v Emily Chaplin>I could see Zack Crane and Jenn Scott pushing back on things like this.</v>

00:04:48.647 --> 00:04:51.698
<v Matthew Martin>They have some very static ideas about the world.</v>

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<v Heather Horvath>I think they are more extreme in their beliefs and try to keep that to themselves at work but it slips out. Jenn loves to hint at how she has voted in the past. Mostly when it seems clear that someone in the conversation voted a different way.</v>

00:05:01.689 --> 00:05:16.579
<v Hurrit Alberty>I don’t like to assume how anyone votes but I most of our staff are educated professionals who live in cities and a good percentage of them are not white, so statistically they tend to go a certain way. And I’ve had enough personal conversations with people to confirm that.</v>

00:05:16.579 --> 00:05:22.450
<v Benjamin Novak>Yeah. We shouldn’t talk about this kind of thing at work but we do. And with the emphasis that we have on being active in social campaigns and volunteer projects it does come up.</v>

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<v Maria Campbell>It does. But people are respectful. Even people who mostly share the same beliefs vote differently sometimes. I know that the Latino community has a large percentage of Republican voters. They vote that way for complicated reasons. Mike Garcia is always pretty quiet in conversations about politics. I think because he isn’t sold on progressivism in the same way that most of his friends are.</v>

00:05:40.661 --> 00:05:48.935
<v Ji-hoon Park>I would guess that Jorje and Rajesh are independents or Republicans as well.</v>

00:05:48.935 --> 00:05:53.494
<v David Abelman>I know we shouldn’t speculate like this but that tracks. I bet Jorje and Rajesh are libertarians.</v>

00:05:53.494 --> 00:05:56.835
<v Emily Chaplin>Chris Ivanko definitely votes Republican.</v>

00:05:56.835 --> 00:05:59.827
<v Matthew Martin>Maybe Haruto too.</v>

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<v Heather Horvath>Is Haruto a citizen? Can he vote?</v>

00:06:03.921 --> 00:06:11.296
<v Hurrit Alberty>Good question. I don’t know how long ago he came to the US. He’s not an easy guy to talk to.</v>

00:06:11.296 --> 00:06:21.924
<v Maria Campbell>I’ve tried but he likes to stick to one word answers and just doesn’t engage at all. He talks to Chris and maybe a few other people but is really closed off.</v>

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<v Ji-hoon Park>Well anyone who prefers Chris’ company to yours certainly is making a choice.</v>

00:06:31.262 --> 00:06:32.512
<v David Abelman>Truer words have never been spoken.</v>

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<v Emily Chaplin>If we bring that sociologist on we should ask them to analyze our staff. </v>

00:06:35.737 --> 00:06:37.537
<v Matthew Martin>Same for the psychologist. </v>

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<v Benjamin Novak>Ha. How did we end up talking about this? </v>

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<v Benjamin Novak>Let’s finish up the business stuff first and then gossip if there’s time.</v>

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<v Heather Horvath>Ben is always the adult in the room.</v>

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<v Hurrit Alberty>Ben one last thing on roles and skill sets. The one department that hasn’t come up is sales.</v>

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<v Benjamin Novak>Oh. Okay. Yeah.</v>

00:06:50.737 --> 00:07:05.662
<v Hurrit Alberty>It’s a super saturated environment. Trends are all over the place. Sometimes it’s really dependent on personality other times it’s really buttoned up and strictly business. I don’t know what moves the needle on improving and innovating in sales. I would be that it’s not more people doing the same prestige NBA programs from top universities. Everything in sales feels old.</v>

00:07:05.962 --> 00:07:13.412
<v Maria Campbell>Sales in general is stuck in the two thousands. Events and swag and drinks. Eventifying. Except when you get one of those teams that just want to talk numbers and data which doesn’t feel innovative either.</v>

00:07:13.687 --> 00:07:19.287
<v Benjamin Novak>Those are great points. That actually might need more of an investigation. We should loop Dave Nolan in on this team. He would be in the best position to investigate that.</v>

00:07:19.562 --> 00:07:21.912
<v Ji-hoon Park>She I mean he is definitely the best person for the job.</v>

00:07:22.212 --> 00:07:24.362
<v David Abelman>I bet Dave will have great ideas about this.</v>

00:07:24.687 --> 00:07:28.587
<v Emily Chaplin>Yeah. Curious to hear what she says about which specialties are most relevant. He is really thoughtful about that kind of thing.</v>

00:07:28.887 --> 00:07:32.487
<v Benjamin Novak>And I’ll add him to the invite for this series in the future. Don’t know how I overlooked him.</v>

00:07:32.787 --> 00:07:35.037
<v Matthew Martin>If we are expanding and reorganizing will she be promoted?</v>

00:07:35.312 --> 00:07:38.987
<v Benjamin Novak>Maybe. We haven’t talked as much about sales so we don’t know what we really want there.</v>

00:07:39.287 --> 00:07:40.637
<v Heather Horvath>The sales team is a mix of characters. Which I think is good. But.</v>

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<v Heather Horvath>It will be interesting to see the types of personalities and skills that are prioritized in the future.</v>

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<v Hurrit Alberty>Heather being quite the diplomat.</v>

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<v Benjamin Novak>Heh heh. Yeah. It’s a colorful group of people.</v>

00:07:47.662 --> 00:07:50.887
<v Maria Campbell>Different clients want different things so our very diverse team can bring that to them.</v>

00:07:51.187 --> 00:07:52.937
<v Ji-hoon Park>True. But perhaps in this case some extra attention is needed. </v>

00:07:53.262 --> 00:07:55.862
<v David Abelman>Let’s talk about this more when Dave is on the call. His is the opinion that matters.</v>

00:07:56.187 --> 00:07:57.087
<v Emily Chaplin>Good call.</v>

00:07:57.387 --> 00:07:58.287
<v Matthew Martin>Yeah.</v>

00:07:58.612 --> 00:08:03.912
<v Benjamin Novak>Okay. So I think that about covers it. Sorry I don’t have more solid things to report just yet. There are going to be a lot of changes coming but we really are trying to be thoughtful and figure out how to expand in a way that makes sense and is best for everyone on staff and for business. You all have said what you want and need and we are listening. Will be making the first moves on everything sometime in the next few weeks.</v>

00:08:04.237 --> 00:08:07.762
<v Heather Horvath>Thanks for the update Ben. I know everything will be fine. Better than fine. Great.</v>

00:08:08.087 --> 00:08:12.987
<v Hurrit Alberty>Excited for the future. A lot of people are really nervous about the world and work and everything but things here seem really positive and like it only gets even better.</v>

00:08:13.312 --> 00:08:19.012
<v Benjamin Novak>That’s great to hear Jake. We are trying and I think your right that things are great and continuing to get even better. And that’s all on you and your teams. So we’re going to try to reward everyone and make things grow in a way that maintains everything that has gotten us this far.</v>

00:08:19.337 --> 00:08:21.087
<v Maria Campbell>Well said Ben.</v>

00:08:21.437 --> 00:08:25.912
<v Benjamin Novak>Thanks. If that’s all I’ll give you all some time back. Stay tuned. I’ll be reaching out over chat and probably asking for time one on one or in small groups as we get things in place and start making changes.</v>

00:08:26.237 --> 00:08:27.287
<v Ji-hoon Park>Thanks Ben.</v>

00:08:27.637 --> 00:08:28.537
<v David Abelman>Thanks all. Bye.</v>

00:08:28.887 --> 00:08:29.537
<v Emily Chaplin>Bye.</v>

00:08:29.887 --> 00:08:31.337
<v Matthew Martin>Have a good day everyone.</v>

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<v Heather Horvath>Bye.</v>