Role Playing
None of us is as good as all of us and each of us has a role to play.
Last week I had the distinct privilege of working with the students of the City College BIC program.
The students are doing an important assignment for the City.
This was not a typical lecture on strategy and creativity.
This was a workshop.
On team dynamics.
Indeed, there is no doubt that what these kids come up with will be great.
This was a conversation about how they will go about making it.
There were two key components we workshopped, I am going to tell you about one of them.
The two keys to team functioning are Values and Roles.
Let’s talk about roles.
How often in your career were the roles of a given team clearly defined?
Let me jump in and say hardly ever, right? People typically work in their functions and titles and hopefully something good emerges.
In fact, I remember when I became a CEO at TBWA\ChiatDay NY, I inherited an office that was 1-17 in pitch wins.
Well, in short order we turned it around and went on a tear.
One of the secrets to our 14-win streak was people knew their roles.
A winning team for a creative business (or a lot of businesses) looks like this.
You have…
1\An Idea Engine
2\A Spotter
3\Expanders
4\Producers or Makers
5\An Organizer
Most of these roles are self-explanatory.
One that might need a little explaining is the “Spotter.”
This is the person who sees an idea and says, “This is it.” They literally “spot” the thing everyone will rally around to expand and build.
This role may happen organically, but as you assemble your team, think about who will know what the idea is and when you have it.
How often have you worked on a project without really having the clarity of an idea, only to have a big pile of material without real organization and then…you run out of time.
Speaking of time, I’ve taken up enough of yours.
So I’ll leave you with this: if you are on a team, understand your role.
And if you are assembling a team, make sure you think about who is on it and what their roles are.
Very insightful. This might come across as a pro domo case, but I do believe that in a complex comms world (all the formats and flavors of social, the collapsed funnel, the creator collabs, etc.) roles 3, 4 and 5 (expanders, producers & organizers) should play a bigger part. Creative agencies in particular have long over-indexed on roles 1 and 2 (idea engine, spotters), having everyone else execute their vision. Nowadays the initial idea is an inchoate notion that needs to be drawn out, defined and designed. As it is enriched by each role the idea doesn't just come to life, it comes to be.
Applause. The concept of “the spotter” is the absolute missing link in how too many executives structure teams of every flavor--from a lot of the best writer/AD pairings (one more adept at the idea, the other at recognizing and amplifying) up to large cross-enterprise groups assembled for this purpose or that. Would say these specific roles, unlike others like the producers, are more situational than fixed, often driven by topical experience, insights, and interests, not to mention there are times when how we interact is shaped by mood.
Personally, I’ve always thought of the spotter as “the listener,” a reflection of the great acting coach Judith Weston’s observation that the best scene partners are almost always the person who listens and feels deeply. But your notion that the “what to do with the raw idea” also comes with the role adds a critical dimension.
Bravo.