Motivation – Purpose

November 22, 2010

RSAnimate: Drive: The Surprising Truth About What Motivates Us

Some basics from the video:

Autonomy: People want to have control over their work.
Mastery: People want to get better at what they do.
Purpose: People want to be part of something that is bigger than they are.

I found a great critique of the book this video is based on here:

http://www.amazon.com/review/R2H2B9W3D2AGEU/ref=cm_cr_pr_perm?ie=UTF8&ASIN=1594488843&nodeID=&tag=&linkCode=

This is written by a frequent Amazon contributor named Wally Bock (his website: http://blog.threestarleadership.com/ ) – he works as a coach. His most salient criticism of Pink?

“Throughout the book, Pink equates “monetary” incentives with “extrinsic motivation.” That ignores praise, promotion, preferment (in scheduling, eg), the admiration of peers, time off, and a host of other positive incentives. It also skews the discussion toward academic studies and away from the real workplace.

Pink also presents the issue as if it were intrinsic motivators (good) versus extrinsic motivators (not good). In the TED talk he even says “This is the titanic battle between these two approaches.”

That’s not how things work in the real world. Intrinsic and extrinsic motivators and their effects interact. You don’t have a simple choice of which lever to pull. You have to understand and influence a complex system.”

Possible Principles

November 22, 2010

1. Our highest priority is to satisfy the client through early and continuous delivery of valuable advertising.
2. Welcome changing needs, even late in development. Agile processes harness change for the client’s competitive advantage.
3. Deliver advertising frequently, from a couple of weeks to a couple of months, with a reference to the shorter timescale.

** For the above: does this work in the Ad World of Campaigns?  or does it work better than “Campaigns?”

4. Business people, creatives and developers must work together daily throughout the project.
5. Build projects around motivated individuals. Give them the environment and support they need, and trust them to get the job done.
6. The most efficient and effective method of conveying information to and within a development team is face-to-face conversation (but not an hours-long unfocused meeting with a large number of team-members).
7. A deliverable (commercial, print ad, or digital object) is the primary measure of progress.
8. Agile processes promote sustainable development. The clients, business people, artists, developers and customers should be able to maintain a constant pace indefinitely.
9. Continuous attention to technical excellence and good design enhances agility.
10. Simplicity–the art of maximizing the amount of work not done–is essential.
11. The best advertising, architectures, requirements, and designs emerge from self-organizing teams.
12. At regular intervals, the team reflects on how to become more effective, then tunes and adjusts its behavior accordingly. 

(These are based on Agile principles – I copied and pasted from NetObjectives and then edited for Advertising.  Just seeing if it works).

Collaborative Problem-solving

November 22, 2010

http://whatconsumesme.com/2010/posts-ive-written/solving-the-most-complex-problems/

“These experiments prove the potential for collaborative problem solving, the market demand for new thinking, and the will of the creative class to participate.


Read more: http://whatconsumesme.com/2010/posts-ive-written/solving-the-most-complex-problems/#ixzz163jmD12c

I’m trying to answer the question “What’s the best way to work in Advertising? What process can create the best work at this point in time?  How can I, as a PM, create an environment for ideas to blossom?”

The Case Against Minimalism (A. Shalloway)

November 22, 2010

http://www.netobjectives.com/blogs/case-against-minimalism

“But perhaps our methods should not be based on values and practices. Perhaps they should be based on values and principles, with possibly suggested practices in common situations. This is one of the biggest differences between XP/Scrum and Lean/Kanban. XP and Scrum are based on values and practices. Lean and Kanban are based on values and principles. Yes, they have practices – but only as suggested possibilities depending upon your situation.”