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By Ishbel Macleod | PR and social media consultant

August 25, 2014 | 2 min read

It can be unhealthy to have only one gender working on an account team, WCRS CEO Matt Edwards and Critical Mass CEO Dianne Wilkins both believe.

Discussing gender, and if this makes any difference in running a creative agency, the duo admitted that people behaved differently in a group made up of just one gender, which could affect the dynamic of the team.

While Edwards said that he believed that his gender did not really play any role in his team, describing himself as “calm…almost to the point of being emotionless”, Wilkins admitted that there were some ‘female’ elements to her behaviour.

Stating that this was something that had been mentioned in senior leadership discussions, Wilkins discussed how she has a “read” on situations, but did not fit with some other stereotypes of women, such as indecisiveness; “I’m impatient…not fantastic at nurturing,” she revealed.

She went on to note that when people met her for the first time and heard that she was a CEO, there could be a mixed response, with some people “surprised that it’s a chick in charge” although most of the reaction, she felt, was positive.

But this was not just an issue faced by women: Edwards admitted that he sometimes faced a similar double-take upon meeting new people due to his young appearance for someone with 20 years agency experience.

“Maybe there’s a difference in the types of leaders that occupy our business, the creative agency businesses versus construction,” he suggested, adding that the agency relied on collaboration and reputation, so a “stereotypical macho” approach wouldn’t work and that empathy was also required.

While affirming that empathy was most often seen as a female trait, Wilkins believed that this was something that all leaders needed.

Edwards also posed the idea that agencies themselves could actually be categorised as more male or female in their approach, based on the culture of the organisation.

He added that the key is getting balance in team, not from a gender but personality perspective.

The full conversation between the two can be viewed in the video above.

Critical Mass WCRS Gender

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WCRS

WCRS is a creative agency combining over 30 years of brand building expertise with the ability to execute ideas in any channel.

The resulting talent base is an eclectic mix of specialists working seamlessly together to execute brand ideas everywhere from TV to Twitter, online to mobile, games to music downloads.

Our mission has always been to create work people care about. And this is now more important than ever.

In a digital age people avoid what they don’t like and amplify what they do. So our aim is to create engagement in whatever form it takes. To create things that people love, choose to interact with and even spend money on.

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Critical Mass

In a complex and fast-moving world, Critical Mass designs unparalleled brand experiences that connect with people. We were established in Calgary back in 1996, and since then we’ve helped global clients like Apple, Nike, Diageo, and BMW (and hundreds more over the years) reimagine digital and do what no one else in their category can do. Today, we’re over 1,400 digitally obsessed employees in 12 offices, across Europe, Asia, and North America—with a major, full-service hub in London.

What makes us different? We truly understand every part of our clients' digital ecosystems, and we deliver success by making data, creativity, and technology more connected, more efficient, and more powerful. Of course, digital never stands still, but neither do we. We help brands seize opportunities so that their customers get a better experience and a more seamless, dynamic, and personalised experience everywhere they go.

We’re also proud to be part of Omnicom, one of the largest holding companies for global advertising, marketing, digital, and communications services firms (serving more than 5,000 clients in over 100 countries).

No matter how much digital changes, one thing will always stay the same—who we are. We’re a transparent, honest, values-driven, passionate partner with a can-do attitude that our clients notice and appreciate.

We’re Critical Mass, but our friends call us CM. Please call us CM.

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