‘It Breaks My Heart to See the Industry Become Its Own Worst Enemy’
This morning Love Our Work released their highly anticipated charter supporting positive interactions within the workplace and online trade publications.
The charter itself is a culmination of feedback from the Love Our Work survey released at the beginning of this year. It is presented as a clear and concise set of agreements that holds the supporter accountable for the types of feedback given to creative work both in the office and anonymous comment sections.
With a call-out not to support media publications that thrive on negativity and a commitment to always own one’s actions, words, and opinions, this charter is the beginning of a new change within the industry.
Jasmin Bedir, CEO of Innocean Australia and Jeremy Willmott, creative director at Paper Moose have been working on this initiative for some time now: collecting data, speaking to supporters, and maintaining one goal: getting the industry to love their work.
LBB’s Casey Martin spoke to both Jasmin and Jeremy about why this charter is so important for the industry.
“I love this industry so much. I’ve spent 17 years working within Australia and the work we are doing is so important,” Jasmin said. “It breaks my heart when I see our industry become its own worst enemy.”
Jeremy spoke about a colleague he once had who got so upset over the anonymous negative comments produced online that she no longer works in the industry – astory that is sure to be relevant to many who work in marketing and advertising.
“These sorts of anecdotes are real and I’ve spoken to many people who know of a similar story or who have themselves left the industry due to its sometimes toxic nature. Even speaking to people at the ECD level, this has affected them as well. So whilst everyone has this sort of bravado or a thick-skin mentality, it really does affect people and I just think we can do a whole lot better,” he said.
Jasmin commented on the fact that the industry is facing a talent crisis. The industry has been attempting to combat the loss of existing talent and the inability to attract new blood for quite some time. However, no one was willing to face one of the biggest contributors to this problem.
“This is a really humble attempt to say, we can do this,” she explained.
According to Jeremy, there will be a future of Love Our Work to provide companies with educational resources to improve leadership, feedback cycles and client meetings.
It’s important to note that the Love Our Work charter doesn’t want the industry to stop discussing work and providing feedback but rather asks the industry to take a step back and think clearly about the words that are said and written.
Jeremy noted that there is a new energy making its way through the industry that is taking a stand against the anonymous negative comments, pushy leadership, and disrespectful clients.
“It’s being led by people who give a shit about the industry and there’s a whole bunch of really passionate people who want to make this a great place to work,” he said.
“We’re missing a collective pride in our work,” Jasmin added.
Jasmin, Jeremy and LBB are willing to face this challenge head on. It’s now over to the rest of the industry to cement where they stand.
