1.
Boulder Digital Works
Evolve!
Are You Ready to Form Voltron?
A 10-minute presentation, June 7 2010
Art Directors Club, Internet Week, New York
© BBH New York, June 2010. Licensed under CC. Some rights reserved.

2.
Ben Malbon
Executive Director of Innovation, BBH New York
Founding Partner, BBH Labs

3.
T-shaped people.
And why they’re important.
3

4.
How Commander Keith, Pidge, Lance,
Sven & Hunk . . .
. . . transmute into Voltron
4

5.
For us, it’s not about ‘being
digital’.
It’s about being integrated.
5

6.
Being integrated means
‘getting’ digital.
And ‘getting’ digital is as
much about new behaviors
as new skills.
6

7.
What we produce has
evolved.
7

8.
What we produce has
evolved.
And so how we produce it
also needs to evolve.
8

9.
‘Then’
9

10.
‘Then’ Now
OUTSIDE COLLABORATORS
TECHNOLOGY
MEDIA
PRODUCTION
CREATIVE
STRATEGY
10

11.
‘Then’ Now
© BBH LLC & Made By Many Ltd
Licensed under CC
Some rights reserved
11

12.
‘Then’ Now
12

13.
This requires an evolved
set of resources.
13

14.
We need people fluent in at
least one language.
But literate in many.
14

15.
We need T-shaped people.
15

16.
COLLABORATIVE
AWESOME

17.
APPETITE FOR COLLABORATION:
LITERACY & ENTHUSIASM FOR
OTHER DISCIPLINES; EMPATHY
CORE SKILL AS CONTRIBUTION
AREA OF AWESOMENESS:
TO CREATIVE PROCESS

18.
How do you know when
you’re looking at a T-
shaped person?
Well, a resume or portfolio
is not enough.
18

19.
I-shaped T-shaped
Me We
Big: 1+1=2 Better: 1+1=3
I can teach I can learn
Linear Networked
Closed Open

20.
T-shaped people are not
enough on their own.
They need the right
operating system in place
to run effectively.
20

21.
Operating system not
ready?
Then even the best
software will fail.
21

22.
(Note: this is the part that
most agencies forget.
Busy hiring in awesome
people, but running on old
OS.)
22

23.
© BBH LLC & Made By Many Ltd
Licensed under CC
Some rights reserved

24.
Think: what’s your plan for
Forming Voltron?
It had better be *at least*
this good . . .
25

25.
Thank you
ben.malbon@bbh-labs.com
http://bbh-labs.com
@BBHLabs
@malbonnington
http://bdw.colorado.edu/
@bdwcu 27