I feel like the answer is obvious but agency leadership, feel free to weigh in: got a reply from a job I applied for, they sent a 13-slide "interview prep" deck that states a 21-day, 4 part interview process alongside a test brief they expect will take 5 to 10 hours. This is a fairly new independent agency btw. Are hiring expectations really that high now or is this as absurd as I think it is?

While Cannes has always been self indulgent it’s never felt more irrelevant.99% of the work that wins does absolutely nothing to build brands or leave a lasting impression on consumers. It feels like a contest celebrating how well agencies were able to trick their agencies into buying something that will only be seen on LinkedIn and the agency reel.

The match nobody has been waiting for!

Today I complete 6 months at my new brand-side role and tbh I'm so so disappointed. I'm extremely free and bored, there's barely any work, and whatever work there is, it's absolutely garbage. I used to work on campaign ideas and scripts at agencies. Here I'm writing emailers and notifications. Is this normal? My brain is thirsty for some good work. Am I being too ungrateful because at least I have a slow-paced-okay-paying-chill job?

I've only ever worked in big traditional creative ad agencies. Got laid off last year, now work in-house. I'm shocked at how much nicer & down-to-earth my current coworkers are. Realizing in retrospect how cliquey & competitive my creative peers were, and how extensively the agency model relies on social hierarchy