Rachel Palekar - Blog 3

Current Event:

On the New York Times website, I found this interesting article titled: Technology and the College Generation. While it was published on September 27, 2013, I felt like the message belonged to a past decade. The author suggests that juniors in college find email to be an archaic, inconvenient method of communication. The students argued that email is “too slow compared to text-messaging” and that it is “boring.” This seems so foreign, and honestly, somewhat bizarre. Beginning in my undergraduate studies, continuing throughout my year working and now at Columbia, it is almost instinctual to check my email at least three times throughout the day. Not only do I check my personal account, but also my school account. It also helps that most of these accounts are linked to my phone so I am notified when I receive a message. I'm sure that most of the students in the article also possess smartphones with this linking ability, making it even stranger that they find email to be such an inconvenience. As I progressed through the article, I reached the paragraph in which the founder of the Campus Computing project Kenneth C. Green mentions that the “use of the school e-mail account may be slightly higher at elite universities.” I disagree! I feel that the fact that I attend Columbia has no influence on the frequency with which I check my emails. I think my email has become engrained in our culture, and my habits are more so related to my desire to be responsible and remain connected with my surroundings.

TTIY:

Burt's Bees added a new video to their YouTube channel this week. It perfectly captures their history, summarizes their enduring values and highlights how they differ from other startups. The video is consistent with their brand identity and really displays their fun, nature-loving, and hippie inspired culture. 

Burt's Bees and Community Service: Burt's Bees has a deep rooted commitment to the "greater good" and in fact, have structured their business model around this. To demonstrate this, they created the "live the greater good" program in which employees participate in community service for 8-30 hours/year (during work hours). This service encompasses a broad range of topics including wellness, leadership, and social outreach. Programs that employees are involved in include Teach for America and Habitat for Humanity. 

The managers and employees alike all feel that these activities help them engage with community and give them a purpose and reason for being here. Another integral aspect of their community service is promoting environmental sustainability. Topics include energy use and ways in which energy use can be reduced in daily life.  The company also promotes initiatives outside of their formal programs such as the celebration of Planet Earth Day. In doing so, they emphasize their company values of living a sustainable lifestyle, and being respectful to the earth. 

Lastly, they are promoting their international business growth as they begin to expand into new areas such as the UK, Australia, Asia, and Latin America. Yola Carlough, their Director of Sustainability, stated that Burt's Bees involvement in these international sustainability movements is helping their General Managers become global stewards for corporate social responsibilities. In this, their "greater good" business model is implemented globally  and they expand their business and commitment to sustainability. 

McCann:

I was pleasantly surprised with out visit to McCann. My excitement began when I was researching the company before the visit. The commercials promoted on their website were intriguing and memorable. I watch one ad on Metro safety and the song was stuck in my head for the rest of the night. Also, I appreciated their pairing of Nature Valley granola bars with music by Andrew Bird. 

Like many of my classmates, I was enamored by the decor and environment at McCann. I loved the open feel that their desk setup allows, and the collaboration that is possible by this arrangement. I also liked the company size and that they were international. I would like to work in an environment that is similar to this. Having said this, the dynamic between the agency and the client, (that was pointed out over and over again), did not sit as well with me. It is a bit daunting to hear that client is king and that the agency tends to always do what the client feels is best. I would like to research how working client-side differs from this agency setting. I love how recognizable and memorable McCann's work is. Mastercard, Ikea, Coca-Cola, Verizon! I like that the scope of their work expands so many big names, and that the end product is often touching and unforgettable.