Virtual Job Interview Practice; Coors Light Slings Free Beer: Wednesday's First Things First

Welcome to First Things First, Adweek’s daily resource for marketers. We’ll be publishing the content to First Things First on Adweek.com each morning (like this post), but if you prefer that it come straight to your inbox, you can sign up for the email here. This Site Lets You Practice Job Interviews With Real Questions From Real Creative Leaders Copywriters Emma Leamore and Pierce Thomson, along with art director Katyana O’Neill, have created “The Interview Before the Interview” to be a tool that puts creatives in front of top creative leaders, albeit virtually, and offers a glimpse into what it would feel like to be grilled by them in the hot seat. The tool features questions from 37 creative directors, executive creative directors and chief creative officers from agencies including Droga5, Dentsu, VCCP, Ogilvy and more. Read more: Learn how the trio developed the idea and brought it to life. Big News in Job Moves and Advertising Leadership Ogilvy CEO John Seifert Says He Will Retire in 2021 John Seifert announced in an internal memo that he will be retiring as Ogilvy’s chief executive in 2021. Seifert has spent 41 years with the WPP agency, the last five as global CEO. Seifert said that he will continue to act in the role while the agency searches for a successor. Read the full memo: “In a moment like this, I am more committed than ever to our people, our clients, and the Ogilvy brand,” Seifert said. Omnicom CEO John Wren Criticizes Wendy Clark for Leaving DDB ‘in the Middle of a Crisis’ While much of Omnicom CEO John Wren’s first-quarter earnings call yesterday was spent on the impacts of Covid-19, he raised some eyebrows when he criticized the untimeliness of Wendy Clark's departure from her role as CEO of Omnicom-owned DDB Worldwide, which she left to take on the top role at rival holding company Dentsu Aegis Network. Read more: Wren said DDB's situation in early 2020 was already "difficult" before the pandemic hit, and now Omnicom expects double-digit declines and potential staff cuts next quarter. Industry Luminary Brian Lesser Joins InfoSum’s Board of Directors Former Xandr CEO Brian Lesser has joined the board of directors at UK-based InfoSum, a start-up attempting to help the online marketing industry advance the challenge of targeting audiences amid heightened privacy regulations. Lesser, who unexpectedly left the top job at Xandr last month, told Adweek the online advertising industry requires an overhaul to meet new privacy laws. What he'll do at InfoSum: Lesser will advise InfoSum on potential new partnerships, including investments and potential new hires, as the start-up seeks to expand internationally. Consumers Are Looking to the Future—Brands Need to Do the Same In a Voice piece, Pinterest CMO Andréa Mallard shared some interesting data. Instead of queries for immediate needs such as entertaining bored kids or recipes using pantry staples, which spiked when the Covid-19 lockdown began, Mallard says "people are getting back to future optimism" and searching for topics around planning travel, events and more. That means that brands whose messaging is in the here and now are behind the curve—and they need to start looking ahead too. Read more: Mallard's advice? "We all have a role in envisioning what’s next—including brands. Be part of the tomorrow they looked forward to today." More of Today's Top News and Insights OpenX Cuts Staff and Salaries Due to Financial Impact of Coronavirus YouTube Brings Fact-Checking Displays to the US Third-Party Sellers Aren’t Surprised Amazon Is Reportedly Looking at Their Data JetBlue Is the First Airline to Require Passengers to Wear a Mask Bumble and BuzzFeed Invite You to Sit In on 11 First Virtual Dates Adweek Together: How Nonprofits Are Working With Big Brands I’m With the Brand: Mike Grillo | Gravity Blanket Ad of the Day: In These ‘Sucky’ Times, Coors Light Is Now Offering Free Beers Coors Light is acknowledging that these are, in fact, “sucky” times that call for a beer—free beer, in fact. The #CouldUseaBeer promotion, which was inspired by 93-year-old Pennsylvanian Olive Veronesi, encourages fans to nominate someone who deserves a free 6-pack. [kickout id="1"] 3 Ways to Keep Remote Employees Engaged Kelly Bayett, Founder & Creative Director, Barking Owl "During normal times, we have a tradition in the studio where we have a BBQ at lunch every Friday. We are doing a virtual BBQ Friday every week with the entire team, including our sales reps. Keeping the same time, most people have lunch on the call and we are able to catch up. We don’t really talk about work, it’s really just to hang out and have fun. I look forward to it every week and it keeps you connected in a real way. We are a really close group and you can really feel it in those calls." David Krupp, CEO, Americas, Billups "We’re doing video happy hours and we’ve launched a Slack channel dedicated to work from home ideas, inspiration and brainstorming ways to stay engaged. This staff-directed channel mixes fun with practical solutions to promote optimal work/life balance while away from the office." Annabel Power, Managing Director, RQ "On day one of WFH, RQ implemented all account teams have a 15-minute morning video chat each day. This gets people motivated early on and keeps them on track with what they need to deliver on day-to-day. The video is great to see each others faces and WFH environments, moustache growing, and the uncut hair that is happening six weeks in!" More of the Latest Mattel Commemorates the Heroes of the Pandemic With New Line of Action Figures This Child Safety PSA Can Be Washed, Folded and Seen Every Week Here's What CFOs Are Expecting as the Economy Begins to Reopen What the Cannabis Industry’s Overnight Transition Teaches Us About the New Retail Higher Education Is Now Functioning With Much More Humanity Netflix Is Bringing Its First Remotely Produced Scripted Series to the Service