Autonomous Agency Employee Handbook

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EMPLOYEE HANDBOOK

WELCOME TO

What you just got yourself into.

Welcome to +autonomous.

New chapters in life and other overused

metaphors aside, you’ve just stepped

into something… different. You’ve just left

the world of tradition and safety behind.

You’ve just entered a digital agency that’s

young, but with the experience of some

of the largest global agencies and clients

under its belt. No pressure.

700 - 402 West Pender Street, Vancouver, BC V6B 1T6 • 604.568.1125 • [email protected]

What is +autonomous?

Autonomy is something we prize and cherish

here. Chances are you’re here because we see it

in you. So what does it mean to be autonomous?

Well for starters, it means you’re self-directed.

We won’t micro-manage you because we trust

you to have the professionalism and experience

to know the rules—and to break them when

necessary. We’ll give you the freedom to take

projects in new and interesting directions that

will earn you recognition and give you that

warm, fuzzy feeling inside. Everyone’s happy.

Especially our clients.


What’s with the + ?

Like our clients, we all have our own unique

cultures and habits. And while being unique

is great, we believe that to be autonomous

is to be something more. To add autonomy

to the skills and abilities you already have

is to uncover your full potential. Besides,

the possibilities and rewards for daring to

take initiative are so much more exciting

than just floating along, don’t you think?

Here, you can accomplish anything you

set your mind to. We’ll do our best to help.

You + autonomous = ?


The French philosopher Voltaire once said “With great power comes

great responsibility” (or you might have heard it from that Spider-

man movie). Sometimes, independence is a gift. Sometimes, it’s a

necessity. Here, it’s both. We’ll provide you with structure, a safe

haven to take risks, and yummy snacks and caffeine, but what you

do with that freedom and candy is up to you.

How is this going to be a little different?

Freethinking is at the foundation of the creative work that we do;

we love it because it’s an opportunity to innovate and end up

somewhere new.

Oh, and “work” has a different meaning at +autonomous. Work here

is exciting. It’s new. We want work to be something you can be proud

of. We want work to be a source of inspiration. After all, if you’re

giving up your time for money, it might as well be a fun and inspiring

learning experience.


Living in the Digital Age

Twitter. Tumblr. LinkedIn. Mobile.

With platforms and applications being developed and improved

every hour, advertising has changed. Our audiences no longer lean

back and passively absorb TV commercials; they now lean forward

to take in information and entertainment that they want. They have a

say in what content they want to consume, and if they don’t like what

they see, they can click away. If you think throwing ads at consumers

is still the best way to increase sales, we’re going to have a problem.

But if you want to spark conversations amongst your audience and

create content that they just can’t click away from, you’re in the right

place.


Rules of Engagement

+ Being honest and open can be tough, we know. We can’t count

how many times we’ve had to say, “Yes, that shirt looks great on

you” either, but there’s no room for bruised egos here. All ideas

are valuable, because no matter how silly they may sound in your

head, you never know if they can lead to something amazing. So

contribute and feel free to disagree if you think you’ve got a point

(it’s not arguing, it’s passionate discussion). But be willing to ‘fess up

if you’ve made a mistake because that takes courage and we respect

that just as much as you being right. But of course these discussions

aren’t productive unless you listen too. Yes, we can tell when your

eyes glaze over.

+ If we’ve brought you on board, it means we believe in you, so don’t

hold back. Because unless you are well versed in sign language, silence

kills creativity and collaboration. An unwillingness to compromise and

be honest will do that too. In advertising, as in a few other fields (law for

instance), telling the truth is risky, but it’s our greatest asset—so use it.

Oh yes and we encourage “passionate discussion,” but please recognize

that beyond a certain decibel level it just becomes angry conflict.

WHAT MAKES GREAT WORK


Teamwork.

While it’s easy to get sucked into the glamour of doing it on your

own, we believe that the truly best work has always come from a

collaboration of minds. There’s a place for ego, and it’s on the other

side of our agency’s doors. The difference that another person’s

perspective makes could be all it takes to go from a “Hmm that’s

pretty good” to a “… I think we just made something special.” Oh,

and another brain will come in handy on days when you feel like you

left yours at home.

“Talent wins games, but teamwork and intelligence wins

championships.” – Michael Jordan


So now, you know what we’re about. We hope you share our respect

for teamwork, the wonderful opportunity to be creative here in the

digital world, and most importantly, the power of autonomy.

Let’s get started and create something amazing, shall we?


Autonomous Agency Employee Handbook

Business

Transcript of Autonomous Agency Employee Handbook