Greetings from the home office - Episode 27: Thomas Städeli, Wirz Brand Relations

Thomas Städeli is CEO of Wirz Brand Relations. He is the father of three children: Finn (15), Milla (12) and Emma (9). A new addition: Jack the dog - an original Australian Labradoodle. Städeli is a big Denmark fan and rides his Vespa to the agency and to clients all year round.

Werbewoche.ch: How long have you been in the home office?

Thomas Städeli: Since the middle of March. End of week 6, then.

Is your entire agency located in a home office?

In principle, yes. However, there are always individuals who take time out from their home office and find the best conditions for this in an orphaned office.

Did you face any technical problems when setting up your workstation back then?

Fortunately not. Since everyone in the team works with a laptop and is mobile anyway, we were able to continue pretty much straight away. All the connections to the servers and the cloud work perfectly.

Where have you set up?

I'm also mobile at home and work where I'm most undisturbed: sometimes at the big family table in the living room, sometimes in the office in the attic, sometimes at the garden table or sometimes after a short fresh air trip in the nearby forest. And yes; I also use the Sunday early-bird gravel ride with friends to continue spinning thoughts.

What all do you need to be able to do your job?

In addition to the technical aids laptop, headphones and iPhone, first and foremost a clear head and the legendary combination of Wirz pad and Wirz pencil as an unbeatable analog basis. Always the simplest and best for - so important - gaining an overview and clarifying priorities.

Is it difficult to separate yourself enough when the children are at home?

After we have installed all the computer programs, teacher and class chats, learning platforms, learning games and other tools and they are working, it's actually going quite well. Of course, the kids ask for advice from time to time or have to help out here and there, but this new form of "24/7 working family" definitely has its appeal.

Do you have home office experience or is this a first?

Every now and then, I would retreat at home for half a day so that I could work in peace. Since the kids aren't so little anymore, that's no problem either.

Which processes are difficult compared to the normal everyday life of an agency?

What is difficult are the intensive discussions in the context of brand or design developments. That simply works much better in a pack in front of the presented overall view. Since we work with project rooms in the agency, you always spontaneously think of or notice something when walking past a pinboard with new developments, for example of brand designs, which you can briefly contribute immediately. And the Zoom aperitifs as a substitute for the spontaneous after-work beer at the agency are also only fun the first time.

Which jobs go smoothly?

The coordination of the jobs, the short exchanges in the teams and the general, more administrative tasks work very well. Interestingly, important, large presentation rounds with customers have also worked out very well and, in some cases, have taken on a whole positive dynamic of their own via video.

Is there anything that even works easier or more productively in the home office?

Once - hopefully soon - all the zooms become less, really focused and undisturbed to work on a concept. The punctuality of meetings has also increased - no one can say they were delayed on the way anymore.

What do they do about the ceiling falling on your head?

Practically at the same time as the lockdown, Jack moved in with us, an original Australian Labradoodle who was assigned to a cattery in England but couldn't make his trip because of Corona. He forces us out into the fresh air a few times each day, which has provided a new and welcome form of short shutdown breaks for me.

Has something like home office jitters started to set in for you?

Honestly, the day-to-day mixing of private and professional life doesn't only have advantages. From this point of view, I'm just learning to appreciate a somewhat clearer separation between home and the agency...

What do you miss most about the physical day-to-day life at the agency?

Since I'm a total people person, I naturally miss the team, the environment, the everyday agency life with the spontaneous dialog in the projects very much. The personal, often completely informal contacts are also irreplaceable in the current home office distancing mode.

Are you confident that your agency will come through the crisis unscathed?

We will weather the Corona storm, that's out of the question. A few budget dents will remain in 2020 and probably also in 2021, but the agency boat is far too well underway to really go into a tailspin. And there is a bright side to such situations: We are now focusing on how we will move in the "world after", how we can use what we have learned and how we can best support our customers on their way to the "new normal".

As we all know, everything has its positive sides. What is it in your current home office situation?

Since I unfortunately never managed to keep a regular father-child day, I now experience everyday family life much more directly and intensively. Let's see how I stay in the loop and don't miss any more SoMe trends when I go back to working mainly at the agency.

When and why did you last laugh in connection with the home office?

If you have Katja, Finn, Milla and Emma - and now Jack! - at home, you don't have to worry about your laugh muscles. And if I ever feel like an extra dose late at night, I'll watch a few episodes of "The Kominksy Method" again.

Even if you don't have a crystal ball: Do you expect the current situation to continue for a long time?

The situation as it is right now will not last forever, but we will feel the consequences of it for a long time, both economically and socially. I also don't believe that "afterwards" everything will simply be the same as "before". Rather, we will return to agencies in a changed and challenging world. And I'm looking forward to that.

What would you like to give your colleagues in the industry to take with them through the crisis?

More than ever, we are working in one of the most exciting industries in the world. Steve Jobs "Stay hungry. Stay foolish." still applies, simply supplemented by a third "Stay healthy".