Reduce Ad Agency Overhead July 11, 2008

Email from my favorite rotund MD to senior management:

“All:

i’ve been looking over the timesheets during my downtime in milan. we have more than a few people who are only 50% billable - yet you’re still hiring. This must stop. Immediately. If your people are not at least 70% utilization, let them go by end of next week.

last month, we broke another revenue month - but profit was only 21%.  we should be operating at a minimum of 24% if not much, much more [TART: greedy bastard]. cost controls, in addition to top line growth will get us there. That, in addition to reducing recruiting and travel expenses [TART: Milan on business? At the Bulgari?]

everyone’s bonuses are tied to this so I need you all to take at your people and evaluate whether they’re worth keeping around.

I will be looking for your recommendations by Tuesday.  This is not personal, it’s business.

It’s been a good month and a great quarter, to be sure. Congratulations. Let’s examine how to be better.

MD”

He needs to get his ass in a Best Western instead of staying at a $1000 a night hotel before he tells us to get rid of our people (even though one of my account managers probably spends 80% of his day smoking in the garage - to each his own).