The End of a Chapter

Yesterday was officially the last day of employment at McCann Erickson. It has been five years to the day I think. It's crazy to think that I was there for so long and how much has happened over the past 5 years. I feel like it's an end to a chapter of my life. Sure, probably a short chapter in the scheme of things (assuming I live to be over 50!) But, it was still a chapter. If you ever asked me about my job, you know that it was not my favorite, but I stayed there 5 years. Rain or shine. Early mornings, late nights. Good days, bad days. So I want to document this period of my life. Maybe one day when my kids wonder what I ever did before I was a mom (because isn't it hard to imagine your mom being young and anything besides your mom?), they can read this.


This is the building that I walked into every morning and spent 9-18 hours per day in for the last 5 years. Good ol' 32 Exchange Place. I had a love/hate relationship with this building. I love that it is old and historic. I love the cool mosaic design on the front. It's actually one of SLC's official historic buildings. It used to be the Commercial Club Building and my Grandma even had memories of going there when she was younger. I think she even said there was a swimming pool in the basement? Weird. Now there's just a bunch of creative's cubes and a Foosball table down there. And if you think this building looks familiar for other reasons, then that means you are guilty of visiting or knowing about The Vortex. Yes, it also used to be a dance club. And the cool painted high ceiling above my cube that I loved so much used to have cages hanging from it. Yup, it's quite the building, with quite the history. Now on to the hates, it was old. So all of the usual problems of old buildings applied. Horrible heating and cooling system, slow elevators, and the most annoying parking garage ever. Another funny fact about Exchange Place is that shortly after I started working there, I saw a report on the news about problems with male prostitution hang outs downtown. And of course they were reporting right in front of our building because Exchange Place was apparently a problem area. So I guess you could say this building has a lot of history and culture. And I'm glad to never have to step foot in there again!

So what exactly did I do in this building? Advertising. It may sound exciting to some, but give me five minutes and you'll be bored by what it is I actually did most of the time.

I was "an account person." Advertising people are basically classified into 4 groups: "Account People", "A Creative", "Media", and "Operations or whatever". This does not mean I did accounting as so many people assume, surprisingly. It means that I was in charge of specific "accounts" or clients of the agency. I was basically the liaison between the client and the creative team. To explain it simply, I had the relationship with the client, found out what needed to be done, come up with the strategy, then we download a creative team to complete the project and deliver. I started as an Account Manager when we were Boede+Partners and we had about 30 or so employees. At that time we only took up the 2nd and 3rd floor of our building. Over the years, I moved up the ranks to Sr. Account Executive and onto Account Supervisor. Don't let the titles fool you, I wasn't really that important, nor did I get a salary that matched the fancy titles. Eventually Boede+Partners got bought out by a global agency, McCann Erickson, and we grew to be 300 plus employees, filling every floor of the building. The acquisition changed a lot. Somethings were better, but most things got worse. When we were small, the agency had such a fun atmosphere. We had a party for every single holiday, we got summer and Christmas bonuses, everyone knew each other, it was great. Soon we became a corporate atmosphere where there was an attempt to keep the fun, but there was more red tape and paperwork to prevent such fun. Instead of an employee, I became an employee number. But with the bigger agency came more clients, bigger names, more opportunities. (which translates to more money for the company, not necessarily to me)

So what did I do? You'd be surprised. Advertising is not all TV spots and magazine ads, it's also sales support, events, research, tradeshow booths, web sites, online ads, emails, demos, Christmas cards, and so on. We even had to interior design jobs for my clients when I was there. Random. We basically did whatever the client wanted us to. My agency's niche was B2B Tech. So instead of marketing to consumers, we were marketing to businesses. During my 5 years, I worked on McAfee Security, VeriSign, Verizon Wireless, and Verizon Business. Most my time was spent on VeriSign and VZW.

I became officially jaded on VeriSign, my 2nd account. It all started with the launch of their new brand. I was my own team for awhile (besides my boss) and had no idea what the crap I was doing. I somehow figured it out and barely survived. After 2 years or so on VeriSign, our company obtained some new business on Verizon Wireless and I was asked to help out. I loved my VeriSign team, but I think my favorite account was VZW. I developed a real friendship with my client and was able to work independently with more responsibility, and I was exposed to a lot more new experiences. After I had Anna, they allowed me to come back part-time and I worked on VeriSign again and then some new business for Verizon Business. (Same mother, but different company than Verizon Wireless)

That's what I did for the last 5 years in a nutshell. That sounded weird. I wasn't in a nutshell for 5 years, but my description is small like a nutshell. I skipped over the gory details, but let me just give you a few things that I WILL NOT miss about McCann Erickson:

• deadlines. actually, unrealistic deadlines, that we still had to meet.



• Late, nights. I think my record was 4:00 am. I hope those vertical brochures made an impact on someone, somewhere!



• Pizza on those late nights. Ugh. Too much pizza!



• PMS208 (a color, not quite red, not quite burgundy...see VeriSign's logo)



• Check marks in logos



• posting my time



• Forecasting budgets



• freezing cold building (We had to go home once because the heater broke and we could see our breath inside. My fingers were literally about to crack as I tried to type.)



• The use of the word "creative" as a noun. I prefer it as a verb.



• Secretly crying in the bathroom stall on bad days. Yes, I really did this. multiple times.



• Words like: download, "why don't you ping him on that?", leverage, launch, route it, "flesh it out", greek it, add value, value add, brand identity, FPO, Chief Decision Maker, should I keep going?



• Egos



• Yelling at a certifiably insane proofreader and then feeling bad about it and crying to Christina



• Staff meetings at Wells Fargo



• Being undervalued and underpaid for my work (It's always bad when you find out other employee's salaries)



• Distribution spreadsheets



• Any project that went past 3 rounds



• Client feedback



• Boston Deli



• Weekly Status Meetings

I should probably stop there. Although it sounds like it was torture for me, I did have some good times there. Mostly thanks to the people. It was a fun atmosphere most of the time. These are the memories that will stick with me and the things I will miss about McCann:

• My friends of course. I worked with so many fun, good people. I wish somehow I could arrange a job there where I could go in for meetings, and then just get off the subject and just talk and joke with my friends. The least productive meetings were always my favorite.



• My friend Christina deserves her own line. On her first day we went to lunch and we realized we had a lot in common: Both had Daves, our Daves were both our high school sweethearts, and both Dave's were in their 1st year of grad school at the U. We were on the same team, but didn't get to work with each other at first, until the 10th Anniversary of VeriSign. That was a nightmare launch and we both had to fly to VeriSign for different random reasons. (Christina had to fly to Seattle pick up a video, but it was delayed, so she missed her flight, took the 1st flight in the morning, and got there just in time to deliver the video before the party. It was classic VeriSign. I just had to deliver some stupid posters and one of those fake big checks) We soon started chatting more often and we had similar work styles, work ethic, and personalities. Although, she is much smarter than I am! I eventually schemed to move my cube next to hers so we could be neighbors. Our cube neighborhood was the coolest. I don't think I could have lasted there if it weren't for her. I could always vent to her about anything and everything. We would go on walks down to Nordstrom just to browse and occasionally go to the cafe for our favorite salads. (may the Crossroads Nordstrom rest in peace) I know our friendship will last long beyond the walls of McCann Erickson. And even state boundaries for that matter. I stole this picture of us off of her blog.




• The pens. Pilot G-2's in Black, Blue, and Red. I snuck a few home. Don't tell. And no Wes, they're not for you.
• Speaking of Wes, it was fun having him work there for about a year. We didn't work together, he was on the Finance team, 4 floors up, but it was fun to be able to go and talk to him or have lunch.



• The Breakroom. This should probably have also been on the bad list. I think this breakroom contributed to at least 5 lbs of weight gain. When I first started it was always fully stocked with whatever snack food you could imagine. Granola bars, trail mix, cookies, chips, pretzels, licorice, peanuts, and so on. As we got bigger, the options slimmed down to a more basic chips, peanuts, and oatmeal. And soda, but that didn't do me any good.



• Choco. Deserves it's own line. There was this cappuccino machine thing where you could choose your flavor packet of coffee and it would brew it up for you. Well, they did have a hot chocolate variety for a non-coffee drinker like myself. It was delicious. Not too sweet like that SwissMiss crap. And if you add a little French Vanilla creamer, bliss!



• The results of truly talented creative people.



• The first time I opened up the Wall Street Journal and saw my first Ad. (VeriSign)



• The times we set up an obstacle course and had races around the cubes. So unproductive, but so fun.



• Jim. My Verizon Wireless client. How do I even describe him? He's just one of those eccentric guys, but so sweet, caring, and fun. Who would have thought I would become great friends with a 45 year old gay man from New Jersey? I will miss our long random conversations about non work stuff. He was such a hoot and I will always have fond memories of our friendship. He even made sure he was in town for my baby shower at work. He was at times frustrating as a client, but he's such a good, quality person. We still keep in touch every now and then and is so sweet about Anna.



• Going on photo shoots and staying at W's and ordering room service. (I only went on 2 actually)



• Getting my hair cut by a celebrity stylist during a photo shoot (well, she was Mariah Carey's, so not sure if that really counts) It was a great cut!



• Jim took me to "The Ivy" in LA during a photo shoot. He loves celebrity hunting so he was hoping to catch a glimpse of fame. No such luck. Actually, I think we did see a B-lister. I can't remember, that's how famous they were. Good, overpriced food though!



• Focus Groups. I actually really liked going to these and found them so interesting.



• Sitting behind home plate at SF Giants game



• The silly parties. Imagine a bunch of creative people coming up with ideas for holiday parties. It was always interesting! My favorite party was after I first started though. Boede+Partners was 2 years old and so we had a birthday party. They brought in lunch, then we closed early and went to Gateway where they rented out a theatre for us and gave us treats. Then, my favorite part, they gave us $100 gift certificate to Gateway. Stuff like this never happened when we were McCann.
• Halloween parties. It was always fun to see what our creative staff would come dressed up as. There was always a contest with steep competition. I am proud to say that I took 1st place one year! We dressed up as a VeriSign ad with one other guy and a guy dressed up like a girl. And then I got an honorable mention when I was pregnant with Anna. I dressed up as a beauty queen and wore a sash that said, "Miss Conception"

So there's the good stuff. Don't think that it sounds fun because of this stuff though. The bad outweighed the good, but thank goodness for the good or else I never would have lasted! And to prove how great the company is, here is a letter that I received a few weeks ago for my 5 years of service there.

It might be too blurry to tell, but in this letter is says that I am enormously valued and it is also addressed, "Dear Kelly:" Yes, I feel so valued. So valued that they couldn't even get my name right on this stupid letter. Thanks New York.

But kids, I did have a good run there. 5 years. It was bad at times, but I'm glad I at least learned something and gained experience. Basically, it just didn't suit my personality. I felt bad making people stay late to finish a brochure. I wanted them to go have dinner with their families, not with me. Even though this is SO different than medicine, I at least can have empathy for Dave after he's had a long, stressful day at work. Now I just need him to gain that same empathy for motherhood!

And I wasn't going to put this in, fearing that it seemed braggy, but this is for my kids, and it's my blog, so who cares what other readers may think. Plus, most readers probably didn't make it this far in the post! Here is the goodbye email that my boss (the partner) sent to the agency on my last day. It almost made me tear up. not really. But it was nice I thought.

Almost 5 years ago, Ashley walked into this agency with her kind personality and ambitious attitude. She started as a Jr. AM on the McAfee account, pushing through stacks of data sheets and brochures but learning everything she could. It wasn't long before she become the most coveted Account Supervisor in the agency. I had Directors in my office begging for her to work on their accounts! That was no surprise, because she always maintained her positive attitude, an eagerness to help others, and became incredibly capable at managing clients expectations. Sadly, Ashley will be leaving us today. With her husband's new medical residency in Wake Forest, North Carolina will be her home for the next 7 years. I want to thank Ashley for everything she's done at this agency. As a member of the Boede + Partners staff, she helped us develop our clients so we could keep growing. She helped wrangle in Verizon Wireless in the early days. And she's just a wonderful person. If you have a minute, stop by her desk before she leaves to bid her farewell and say thanks. Thanks again, Ashley. I will miss you!!

I must admit, I thought I would be skipping out of the building, jumping for joy that I was finally done, but it was kind of sad on my last day. Bittersweet. I was going to miss all the friends I made there and the good memories that came of it. But as soon as I walked in to my mom's and saw my sweet Anna, any bit of sadness vanished immediately. I have a bigger and better job now. The best! It's harder and the hours are way worse, but there is nothing else I'd rather be doing.

I'm not saying I'll never work again. Just for now, this is where I need to be. With my joy. my baby girl.

The greatest work you will do will be within the walls of your home.

-Harold B Lee