One of our AEs came to me today asking for a last minute job to be done. (Last minute, as in 24 hour turn-around, which is pretty crazy ridiculous.) It sounded weird, but I assumed it'd all been cleared by the ACD, so I said I'd do my best. Come to find out there _was_ a conversation with the ACD, who declined, saying there wasn't enough time.
When it was discovered that the AE went over the ACDs head, there was some unhappy indians around the office. Supposedly, it was just a miscommunication, but I'm not sure if I believe that. Who knows? Anyway, it's all good. The assignment ended up being accepted, which is why I'm here at 10pm on a Thursday. Fun!
What I've learned is that you should never go around the structure of communication that's been established, whether explicit or implicit. It's a good rule of thumb to follow and less sadness is felt in the land.
For the n00bs:
AE = Account Executive
ACD = Assistant Creative Director
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Ooh- do you watch MadMen? Thats where I learned all about AEs and ACDs. According to that show an AE should NEVER go over the ACD- bad things will happen. Like Don Draper will RUIN you. I feel cool that I didn't need the n00b translation.
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