With 175 offices in 60 countries, global agency Wunderman wants its over 7,000 team members to feel connected. Every December, Wunderman sets aside a day in December to share their unique office traditions globally. This year, Wunderman Day, will be on December 1st.
Jamie Gutfreund
DIVERGE talked to Wunderman’s global CMO Jamie Gutfreund about the story behind this day.
Background:
The Wunderman network spans 175 offices in 60 countries, with offices everywhere from Stockholm to Santiago, from Seattle to Sydney. At such a large global agency, it can be difficult to feel a real sense of community, but Wunderman Day is how we make sure we don’t have that problem.
Each December, we set aside a day to share our unique office traditions from one region to the next. We do that by creating ‘day in the life’ videos and trading culture boxes aka packages full of goodies that showcase what individual cities have to offer: Danish fairy tales, Middle Eastern art and Memphis barbecue spices.
Where did the concept come from?
Our CEO Mark Read wanted to find a way to connect our offices and foster relationships across our global network. What better way than to ask people to share the things they are excited about, that tell their unique story of their offices and community. So we created culture boxes. And, in a world where content and images are vital for sharing, we realized we had a unique opportunity to spark a huge deluge of photos and videos if we gave people the tools or rather the “excuse and opportunity” to have fun with the culture boxes.
How long have you been doing this?
This is our second year.
Are the themes different every year?
They will be – but the thread that connects everything is the desire to build relationships between offices and talent all across the world.
What is your favorite part of Wunderman day?
I love seeing the photos of the offices sharing their efforts to create their culture boxes and then receiving the boxes from other offices. I also really love when our offices are “cross-talking” and building relationships with people around the network and across the world. It’s all about relationships and having friends in offices throughout the network helps us feel more human and connected in the best way possible way.
Why is it so important to be connected to your team?
Our business is based on talent. We want to be the agency where people come to do the best work of their careers and part of that depends on their ability to build strong relationships – not just with clients – but with colleagues. When you have a business challenge or opportunity, its vital that we can reach out to experts and resources around the network. Who do you call? It’s so much easier when it starts with a strong base of a relationship.
Our approach to working is called Collision and that’s how we deliver on our positioning of being Creatively Driven. Data Inspired. But all of that requires a strong human element. What better way to build a global community than to give everyone a chance to celebrate what makes every person and every office unique?
What is the feedback you get from the team?
Take a look at #WundermanDay – we couldn’t be more proud of the response. People from Beirut, China, London, Seattle etc are all sharing and talking about the event. We can’t mandate enthusiasm – that comes from our offices.
