Youth Gets Old

Advertising agencies, especially the huge ones, have a model that they've worked for years: they hire brilliant young people straight out of college and throw them into the cauldron of business. Those young people, filled with energy, work endless hours, travel constantly and get to see the world. Very exciting. And very draining.

After a few years most of these promising young people get tired of the grind, they get tired of not seeing their friends or loved ones. And they drop out of the business, sometimes forever. They are then replaced by a new crop of hungry young people ready to jump into the cauldron. And the cycle repeats.

What's lost in all of this is the client. Too often the client, who hired the agency after meeting with more mature (older) and experienced professionals, is then given a team of 20-somethings who are in charge of the account. Those 20-somethings are often very brilliant, but they don't have the extra decade or two of experience that the client also yearns for.

Youth can get old quickly. A balanced team of young and not-so-young may be the best answer for the agency and the client.

Barry LaBov
LaBov & Beyond
www.labov.com