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RSSLike most other industries, the media industry took on too much leverage over the past 15 or 20 years, and not just financial leverage from too much debt. Many companies also leveraged up their staffs, adding more and more people with the expectation that their markets and businesses would continue to grow at double-digit rates. For many companies, it was easier to hire more people to handle the increased work rather than finding ways to increase output per person. Hiring is almost always easier than reengineering. Unfortunately, as the growth stopped and then reversed itself, most media companies have found themselves this past year with many more folks than they need, and many folks working in areas that aren't critical to their core business. Thus, lots of folks are facing career choices. Here is some of the counsel I give folks in this circumstance:
It never works that way. Some market sectors come back early. Some come back late. And some never come back. I grew up in a small mining town in western Pennsylvania. When the U.S. steel industry collapsed in the early 1970s, the town's economy did as well. We all grew up amid a constant dialogue about what life would be like when the steel industry came back. It never did, and neither did my hometown's economy.
It is critical for everyone to understand the core drivers of the markets behind their businesses, and understand how those drivers are likely to recover, or not recover. Sitting, waiting and hoping is never a good strategy.
I myself believe that once we are through this economic crisis (probably the end of next year or early 2011, we will see a very robust digital media market. However, I'm certain that it will look very different than it does today, and I believe that critical categories like exposure-priced advertising may never come back the same. Media will be a great business again, but it will be different. What do you think?
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As usual you are spot on. I was was recently caught in a RIF where successful revenue generators hitting their numbers were let go, so anything goes these days. Fortunately, my wife and I always lived at or below our means which has helped us through difficult times.
In terms of essential skills, I couldn't agree more. In my case, it's understanding client needs and industry trends that leads to selling...but it's even more than that. I've made it a point to have a set of ancillary skills that make me stand out from the crowd in terms of added- value to both my company and our clients.
Lastly, market recoveries are always different and this one will be especially unique. Understanding macro and micro trends as well as where leading companies are positioned to take advantage is hugely important. In my category, success metrics will certainly not be tied to exposure priced advertising but by measurable engagement, actions and ROI. Thanks for your insightful comments. They are always helpful. David
The agency business is great at siloeing itself to death. There seems to be too many specialists riding the hype train, and too few multi-platform aggregators to pull the legions of disparate minds together.
The financial industry collapsed from the twisted complexity and black boxing that were created for products that were no longer understandable nor auditable with common sense.
I would say the future of media belongs to aggregators - Jack of all trades, master of one - the marketing bottom line. The future of prolonged pain and disaster, belongs to the specialists who just keep on digging deeper and deeper into their square centimeter of plot - online, offline, below-the-line.