Greetings from the Home Office - Episode 4: Jeff Gerber, Comet

Jeff Gerber is a father of three and Executive Creative Director at Bern-based LSA agency Komet Werbeagentur. He prefers Google Hangout to Zoom and is still waiting for confirmation of registration from Webex. He would also like to commend the Rod agency and the FOPH for doing the right and important communications work.

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

Jeff Gerber: On Wednesday 18.3. at noon I left the office until further notice.

Is your entire agency located in a home office?

All except for one art director. But he has a short way to work, which he can manage by bike without public transport.

Did you face any technical issues while setting up your workstation?

Not at all. A few Macs had to be spontaneously retrofitted with VPN, but our IT partner took care of that in less than an hour.

Where have you set up?

We haven't had a classic "study" at home for a long time. So I'm used to installing myself wherever it suits me. Sometimes in the kitchen, sometimes in the garden or somewhere in between.

But first coffee: For Jeff Gerber, the home office day begins at the kitchen table.

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

M.I.A. Macbook, iPhone, Airpods.

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

My partner and I are a well-coordinated team. Nevertheless, it can sometimes happen that a three-and-a-half-year-old is loudly demanding a piece of fennel in the background during a customer call.

First things first: Obligatory morning reading in Jeff Gerber's home office.

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

No, that's not a first. But what is new is that we both do home office at the same time. There have already been complaints about my apparently loud keystrokes.

Based on initial experience: Which processes are difficult compared to the normal daily routine at the agency?

Our joint creative processes intuitively run differently. We don't meet in a video call for this. Everyone brainstorms on their own and then drops their thoughts into a Slack channel. That way, the other creatives can reflect in peace and develop the idea further. It works very well and - according to my early prediction - is even more efficient.

In the waiting room before the client meeting.

Which jobs go smoothly?

So far everything works tiptop.

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

In addition to the above-mentioned creative processes, there is certainly also administrative work, during which one is only too happy to be interrupted in the office by a spontaneous glance over the shoulder with the consultant or a joint coffee with the copywriter.

Lego Break.

Should the home office phase last longer: What do they do to prevent the ceiling from falling on your head?

I'll think of something before the ceiling falls.

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

The "can-you-come-over-to-my-screen-quickly" and the "going-to-the-italian-again-today?" You notice... I already miss the physical closeness of our teams. But that's a modest price to pay for everyone's health.

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

I've always found business video calls a bit strange. Now you at least get small insights into many different Swiss households.

The outdoor home office... already occupied.

New home office interview online!

Closing time!