APRIL FOOLS

The Hunt Is Always Better Than The Prize!

This Easter the Fun Mccannix concurred that the hunt is always better than the prize. So we decided that McCann would get the fun bits and all the benefits would go to animal charities.

At the crack of dawn the "Love Bunnies" were up and at it...Golden Lindt bunnies worth R500 were hidden in strategic spots and one very high-risk area. Clues were then sent out in the form of challenging riddles to the team.

Once again the McCannites rose to the challenge and all the bunnies were soon found. The monies won have been donated to the Alberton SPCA and WWF.

Well done guys and thanks for all the support!

The Fun McCannix

The Spirit of giving...

With the festive season approaching and the office parties flying thick and fast, we at Universal McCann would like to invite you to consider the following:

Many companies have issued directives and instructions that functions occurring at this time of year be referred to as "End of Year Functions" as opposed to "Christmas Parties". This is of course perfectly acceptable and it is in keeping with our cultural and spiritual diversity.

The caveat to this is that it becomes all too easy to marginalise a common thread that runs through all our cultures and spiritual leanings:

"Goodwill to others"

South Africa abounds with those less fortunate than ourselves. Poverty is rife, AIDS is becoming a pandemic of biblical proportions, and illness strikes irrespective of race, religion, gender or station.

It is with this in mind that we have unanimously decided to forgo our traditional UM "End of Year" gathering and channel the apportioned budget to something far more meaningful.

Innitiated by Nazeer Suliman and in conjunction with KFM we are helping a gravely ill young girl; her name is Wanita. Wanita is 13 years old and suffers from Metachromatic Leukodystrophy (MLD). By all accounts this is a truly horrible disease which slowly destroys the white matter of the brain and myelin cells in the body.

Wanita becomes tired very easily and even simple things like eating with a knife and fork or brushing her hair are serious challenges that are often too much for her.
All Wanita has ever wanted is a Television in her room for when she gets too tired.

We have granted Wanita's wish and provided her with a Television, a DVD player, and a DVD library. Our hopes and prayers are also with her and her family that she might overcome this awful affliction.

We are also going on a mission to buy toys for the children of Saint Mary's Children's Hospital.

We challenge all of to look to others less fortunate, to find a noble cause and to champion it. Join us in not merely thinking about those less fortunate than ourselves, but actually stepping up and doing something about it.

Spread the word within your department and tell your clients!! We look forward to hearing about what you are going to do for those in need.

Together we can make a difference this Festive Season.

Company Team Build - 18 October 2007

As Thursday the 18^th of October dawned with a clear and warm sunrise, McCannites across Jo’burg donned their colourful T-shirts, representing their team allocation for the day, and made their way to the Kyalami Function Venue.

The activity for the day was Art-Jamming – each team receiving a selection of designs and blank canvas tiles on which to etch and paint these designs. The tiles (all 56 of them), when placed together, created the Masterpiece (which now hangs in reception – no one can accuse us of not showing pride in our creative work). So what’s the catch in this seemingly simple exercise? No-one (besides Wim Spronk the mastermind Creative behind the Masterpiece) has seen the big picture and the segments were allocated randomly to the teams, with no team having received two adjacent pieces.

Without collaboration, integration and a dash of inspiration, the task would be impossible. After a half hour spent trying to figure it out in isolation, the teams came to the rapid realization that, unless they started sharing information, lining up their individual tiles with each other, and working hand-in-hand, the Masterpiece would become a Disaster-piece.

With the initially divided colours working in tight huddles around their tables, the venue was soon awash with a palette of bright t-shirts dashing around in excitement and eagerness. Competitive whispers were replaced with urgent echoes across the room and gleeful whoops when the right team with the needed information was located.

Three hours later, with the final brushes of paint having been made, it was time for the Masterpiece to be assembled. With the colourful tiles laid together, the segmented and somewhat meaningless pieces came to life. The big picture was revealed! A rare moment of silence prevailed as the realization hit home that the whole is greater the sum of its parts.

In true McCann style, the success of the morning’s activity was celebrated until well into the evening. Between fun soccer, extremely competitive volley ball and rhythmic (and some not so rhythmic) dancing, the McCannites spent some well-deserved time having fun in the comfort of friends.

Yet there is a moral to every good tale, so here’s a summary of the lessons of the day.

Collaboration, “the act of working together with one or more people in order to achieve something”, synonyms are “teamwork, partnership, group effort, association and alliance”.

Integration, “the process of coordinating separate elements into a balanced whole”, synonyms are “addition, mixing, incorporation, combination, amalgamation and assimilation”.

What does this mean to us? We are all loyal bearers of the logos of our three operating companies. But, without collaboration and integration we will never achieve the potential masterpiece that McCann Worldgroup South Africa holds for us all.

We must work together towards the goal, the masterpiece, and the promise of McCann Worldgroup South Africa as a seamless operating company.

And what is the goal, the big picture for McCann Worldgroup South Africa moving into 2008 and the future beyond that? Watch this space! As we perfect the art of pulling together as a force to be reckoned with in this industry, this market and this region, the big picture will soon be revealed by end of year.

That dash of inspiration? Each of us needs to be accountable and committed to working together in ways, manners and behaviours that keep all of enthused and inspired! McCann Worldgroup SA is demonstrably greater than the sum of the individual disciplines.

So here’s to the future, the fun and the ultimate success that each of us individuals play in this greater picture.

McCann Worldgroup People News

We have been asking you to send us your news bits and pieces on a monthly basis for the staff meeting. We would like to know:

• Who's getting born
• Who's having a birthday
• Who's getting married
• Who's recently single
• What's happening in general around the building

The following juicy tales were received for the last staff meeting held on 17 August 2007 :D

• On 3 August the offices were flooded ... Lance showed off his pretty feet; many other people also helped by getting their feet wet by sweeping water out of offices and boardrooms. Now the UM bar will take longer to complete :(
  

• SUE Rooney is having a baby in September.

• MANDY Waddington will be giving birth to little Isla Plum Waddington mid December 2007

• JANE Simpson got a new puppy on the 18th - Enzo Chase Simpson

• ARCHIE Masebe and MPUMI Mthembu recently paid labola!!!!!!!

• DAVID Selikow stopped smoking - congratulations!

• DEE Hufkie, TRACY Doye & JANE Simpson has been unsuccessful in their non-smoking attempts :(

• DICHABA Phalatse just bought a new car - happy travels! :D

• SALLY Makgopa ordered her new car from GM - so proud of her a brand loyalty ;)

• ANTHEA Weldon is getting married on 29 September

• PAULINE Cindi will be celebrating the big "50" on 15 November

• CHRIS Potter is getting married on 8th December
  

An Introduction to McCann Worldgroup Solutions

Staff Meeting 17 August 2007

In the past all service divisions were housed under Herdbuoys McCann Erickson. With the announcement of McCann Worldgroup SA, this is what the structure now looks like.


The solutions provided are:

• Executive Group Management
• Finance
• Information Technology
• Human Resources
• Facilities Management & Office Administration
• New Business & Public Relations

Our aim is to:

• be the best solutions provider to any advertising / media group in South Africa
• be the employer of choice
• offer best practice / be trend setters
• become strategic business partners to you, our clients

Our key differentiators are passion and knowledge.

How do we plan to get there? ONE STEP AT A TIME! And by building bridges and relationships with internal clients and suppliers.

Some initiatives for the next six months are:

• Finance: Implementation of the Navision operating system
• Facilities & Admin: Office refurbishments & new telephone system
  
• IT: Office 2007 for PC's & Adobe Creative Suite 3 for creatives
• PR: Intellectual Property Seminar
• HR: Company Teambuild end September & Performance based increases in April 2008

And to prove our slogan "Service with a Smile!" ... the team dressed up as waiters and served those who attended the staff meeting :D

"grrrrr .. I'm struggling to upload pictures! grrrr .. I will try again tomorrow :D"