Where did the summer go? These months seem to slip by so quickly, and we’ve been really busy holding Bureau events and sharing our favorite resources (and memes) in the Bureau Slack. Connecting with leaders across the country is my favorite part of working at the Bureau, and every week I send out an informational newsletter that dives into one hot topic and includes some of those useful resources we share. I hope you’ll consider signing up for the newsletter here, but we’ve also collected the best of those links right here.
AI
The AI conversation is continuing, and a new McKinsey Global Survey sheds some light on the latest research. A growing number of orgs are actively using AI tools and planning their strategy, though it still looks like early days for a lot of companies. We also shared a great conversation from Jemurai that delves into the security issues surrounding AI.
Extra AI goodness:
Updating Marty Cagan's Product Risk Taxonomy for the Generative AI Era (Blog link)
What is Inflection AI Pi chatbot? (Article)
Writing guidelines for the role of AI in your newsroom? Here are some, er, guidelines for that (Article link)
IBM says 40% of the global workforce will have to learn new skills over next three years due to AI implementation (Article link)
Financial Health
When it comes to financial health as an agency, one of the most important things you need to have in your toolbox is an effective way to evaluate customers and what they will bring to you throughout the relationship. Parallax has a great guide on how to utilize and calculate the lifetime value of a customer.
Money talk:
Duration-Based Pricing FTW! (Blog link)
How's your agency's pipeline? (Blog link)
Treat Yourself
It’s time for a bit of a mental palette cleanser now, and we’re going to start off with a word from HackSpirit about how you can practice self compassion. It offers 15 tips, including tips on mental and physical health, and how you can be your own biggest cheerleader. I don’t know about you, but I could use a pick-me-up like this frequently. Check it out, but of course don’t get after yourself if you decide not to.
More to help you chill:
11 Lakes With the Bluest Water in the World (Blog link for the adventurer in you)
Timeline of Pencil Sharpener! (Just-for-fun video link)
Boosting and Measuring Success
They said it couldn’t be done. That it was too much power in one place. But we finally did it -- we collected the top 12 Bureau videos and put them in one playlist. Check out videos on project management as a leadership role, how to attract the best clients, and mastering the value conversation. It’s a fantastic go-to resource.
More about ensuring your success:
How to Track the Success of Your B2B Website Redesign with a KPI Tracker (LinkedIn article link)
KPIs that Matter: How to Hit Your Utilization Target (Blog link)
Productized Services: How Custom Digital Services Firms Can Adopt Them (Blog link)
Everything Is Cyclical (Blog link)
Well, that’ll do for this August edition. As we head into the last third of the year, I hope you’re extra patient with yourself and with others. And again I invite you to check out our weekly newsletter for a regular dose of that Bureau goodness. But I’ll be back here next month to share another crop of great resources.