IQ Interview: Brett Marchand, Executive VP & Managing Director of Cossette
By Bruce Powell
Cossette has long been one of the most widely recognized agencies in the marketing communications industry. With clients ranging from Bell to BMO to Nike to Coca-Cola, Cossette consistently produces great work as well as great employees that are consistently sought out by other top agencies.
Their recent re-branding to ‘People from Cossette’ truly shows the value and importance they place on their people - in fact Cossette truly believes that their people are a critical asset. Focusing on the two core traits of passion and entrepreneurship, Cossette continuously looks to hire those that represent and share the same beliefs as the founding partners. In this month’s IQ Interview, we sit down with Executive VP and Managing Director Brett Marchand to hear how they hire and retain the top talent that drives their business, as well as his Top 3 Hiring and Retention Tips.
Questions:
IQ: Do you have an overriding people strategy?
COS: We do have a specific people strategy and it’s extremely important given that we’re a serviced-based company. What our business is based on and what we offer to our clients is very simply, our people. After our client roster, people are actually our only asset.
In terms of what we look for, there are really two core values that we look for in “Cossetter’s” – passion and an entrepreneurial spirit. It is these two characteristics that are a true reflection of who and what the company is. We look for people who have demonstrated both, whether it be having started their own business in high school or maybe they come from an entrepreneurial family. That’s also why we tend to pay very close attention to and probe people on what their other interests are outside of work. It gives us insight into whether they’re a passionate-type person.
There are three other key traits we look for, that form a triangle if you will, around passion and entrepreneurship. The first is the ability to integrate – to work in a team environment, have knowledge across multiple functions, and be able to adapt and work collaboratively. The second is credibility – having experience and specific knowledge in a given area of expertise. The cultural traits are a must, but the person also has to have the ability to deliver and perform at a high level. Finally, the third item is Emotional Intelligence. Emotional Intelligence means being mature in tough situations, giving credit to others when due, taking responsibility for failures, and accepting personal accountability.
IQ: Can you describe your hiring process?
COS: For us, our hiring always starts internally. We post jobs internally first because filling a position from within is always our preferred option. Posting internally also serves a second purpose though – it opens it up to referrals from our employees. We believe great people usually know other great people and we have a generous referral program in place to encourage our employees to let us know if they know anyone who would be a great fit for the team. In addition, our employees act as a first round of screening for us – people usually aren’t going to refer anyone who would reflect poorly back on them.
Step 1: Assess for 'Fit'
The first step in the actual interview process usually starts with our Talent Acquisition Manager. This interview isn’t as much about looking for specific expertise as it is about determining if the candidate is a “Cossette” person – looking for those inherent Cossette traits like passion and entrepreneurship.
Step 2: Meet The Team...and More!
From there, if we decide the candidate fits with our culture and mentality, then we get them to meet with the Hiring Manager and members of the team with whom they’d be working. We also have them meet with people outside their direct team – they might be people who work on the same client but in a different division, or they might work on a different account altogether. We try and get a wide range of opinions because we take hiring very seriously.
Step 3: The Veto Rule
We also have a veto rule we maintain. It started with the original partners of Cossette and we still carry it on today. It essentially means that if someone who interviews a candidate feels they aren’t right for us, then they have the ability to veto the decisions of others who are in favour of that candidate, no matter if they’re in the minority.
IQ: How has your hiring evolved over time?
COS: Well we’ve slowly gone from a small company that started in Quebec, to being one of the most widely-recognized global agencies. Operating globally naturally forces all of your processes to evolve, including hiring. We make a distinct effort though to ensure the core Cossette values and traits remain consistent in all of our employees. Those values and traits really are a reflection of the original partners of the agency.
Our hiring has evolved particularly as the landscape of the marketing communications world has changed. New media is coming to the forefront, and that usually requires a different person with a different skill set. So we’re now hiring people with certain skills that have never been a big part of our business before. Internally, that forces the people doing the interviewing to be well versed in these different technologies and tactics.
As we’ve grown, both in size and into different markets, diversity has really come into play for us as well. As our team becomes more diverse, we need to keep ensuring that everyone works well together and continues to respect each other.
IQ: What challenges have you encountered in hiring and retention?
COS: One of the biggest challenges has come as a result of the industry – it’s changing at breakneck speed. Today we need to find more people with breadth and the ability to be great in multiple areas which is tough. We need people who are not only creative, but who can also be strategic – who understand different forms of media. It’s keeping that balance of having the right number of specialists and generalists that can be tough because clients still want us to be experts as well.
The demographic that has presented the biggest challenge for us has probably been the Gen Y group. They’re an incredibly bright and enthusiastic group, however they have very different views than the generation that came before them, and from the new grads who are just entering the workforce. They have incredible passion and drive, but they refuse to let their careers take over their lives. They want to be here for their 40 hours a week and then go home to their personal lives – they want a very clear divide between their personal and professional lives.
There also seems to be a bit of a mentality in this industry where people feel the need to jump ship or move on after about 2 years. Part of it is because we provide so much to our employees here in terms of training and the opportunity to work on a wide variety of projects, that they’re highly desirable to other agencies - it’s that double-edged sword.
IQ: What Retention efforts do you employ that allow you to hang on to your great employees?
We offer a number of things to our employees that show both how much we appreciate them, as well as give them the opportunity to take on new challenges while still remaining with the company.
From a career progression standpoint, we offer our employees the opportunity to transfer into different divisions, onto a different client, or even to another one of our international offices. We also encourage and help our employees further their education, whether it be internally or externally. We offer many different training programs and sessions ourselves that further people’s knowledge on the various parts of our business, but we also support outside education as well.
Some of the other perks we offer our employees include a generous referral program, a company share-purchase plan, and regular social outings and team-building activities among other things. We wholly believe that appreciating and treating your employees well pays off when it comes to retaining them.
Cossette’s Top 3 Tips for Hiring and Retaining Top Talent:
- Find people who feel like your company is the only place for them to work – people who have invested in themselves and made a commitment to get there.
- Do everything you can to create long-term employees. Offer broad training programs and the opportunity to move within the company so employees don’t feel like they have to leave if they want to do different work.
- Create an atmosphere for people to collaborate and appreciate each other’s abilities and differences. Team building outings and parties also help to make everyone feel a part of the group and culture.
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Bruce Powell, Managing Partner, established IQ PARTNERS as a leading recruitment firm to help entrepreneurial companies hire better, hire less, and retain more.
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