Publishing Team: roles and organization and Notes on Design Practice: Stories and Prototype as Catalysts for Communication:

One basic underlying AHA from both readings is the constant stuggle in any industry that involves creatives, amongst the artists and the managers that are involved with showing the profit margin. There are two different types of people that communicate in a totally different manner that are expected to cooperate and collaborate to produce a project. But each group has its own agenda, and it is very hard to meet at a middle ground. On a recent documentary film project that I had the role of the video editor, I witnessed a lot of strife and struggle between the director and the financer. The financer wanted to be sure that his investment was secure and the director wanted to know that her artistic integrity was being spared. And this is mirrored with website publishing. The publisher acts like the financer or the executive producer, worried about the project coming in at budget and be able to make a profit, while the director is like the managing editor concerned about the quality and efficiency of the website’s content.
The layout of roles in this document is an ideal situation. In some situations, we do not have the luxury of having such a large team. At the hospital where I work the website is designed, coded and updated by a team of less than ten people. I produce videos in a team of one. I wish that I could show my supervisors how many people there needs to be and should be to do this type of work. In Notes and Design on Practice, a few key items are highlighted; the need for team building, and how important it is to know your audience. When I was in college and worked for the Student Government we were always doing team building activities which I did not fully understand and I did not appreciate their value. In my professional career it is very rare that we have team building exercises. I think in my marketing department, all the employees do not know what the others do.
This seems like a very basic thing to do with the department. Communication is so key to obtaining the correct messages in the project.I found recently since I have been working closely with the internal communications director that has notes of all the key messaged we need to hit in each digital media piece that it is easier to hit them. I guess in this aspect I am in a rare place since most creatives teams are not in that close vicinity with the communications director.
Storytelling is so important too, being able to have all parties understand where everyone is coming from is such a challenge.