Edited by Donald Gunn. Published by Flaxman Wilkie. 230 pages.
It will be straight to the tables for most, to see which agencies humbled you and which ones you can taunt in 2005. But there is much more to the Gunn Report, the annual compendium of the world's most awarded ads, than a provocative end-of-year mark for creative performance.
The combined book and DVD also contains a showreel of the 100 most awarded campaigns of 2004, no doubt provoking an impassioned critique about the wisdom or the idiocy of the judges, but even the most jaded creative will find much to admire here, even envy, in a year when Asian work achieved great recognition - such as the celebrated Thai campaigns for Soken and Unif Green Tea, which raised the flag for Asian creativity around the world. But there are gems, from Mexico to Malaysia, throughout the book.
Further food for thought is provided by guest essayists, including the global creative heads of TBWA and Saatchi & Saatchi, John Hunt and Bob Isherwood, DDB's chief creative officer in the US Bob Scarpelli, French creative duo Fred and Farid, former JWT lifer and WPP director Jeremy Bullmore and Havas' chief creative officer and vice- chairman Jacques Seguela.
All in all, an appetising selection to stimulate, encourage and inspire in equal measure. - Mike Savage
ASSESSING ORGANIZATIONAL COMMUNICATION
By Cal Downs, Allyson Adrian. Published by The Guilford Press. 292 pages.
So often in public relations, 'how-to' and academic-type books tend to either generalise or over-complicate organisational communication, usually leaving readers turned off by their intricate theories, or enriched but inadequately informed.
Neither is the case here. The authors provide a solid basis for understanding the finer points of communications within an organisation, along with a practical ability to grasp its huge potential.
The book includes various analyses that can be applied in many situations, each complete with sample questions or guidance on the type of information one needs to strengthen communication overall.
In fact, the examples used, from a summary of interviews in an industrial environment to a sample report on critical communications experiences, were the book's most valuable parts.
This book is certainly worthy of consideration and will challenge current beliefs while making you smarter about identifying, diagnosing, and addressing myriad organisational situations.
- Gary Grates is VP comms/North America, GM. This book review was first published on Brand Republic.com at www.brandrepublic.com.
