What it's like to work at Nike's ad agency Wieden and Kennedy, according to insiders

• Wieden and Kennedy is one of the most desirable places to work if you're in advertising, despite not having the best titles or salaries.
• Insiders talked about what it's like to work at the agency, which is known for hiring industry outsiders and having unconventional organizational structures.
• Despite its reputation, leaders conceded Wieden and Kennedy is not perfect or the best fit for everyone.
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For people in advertising, Wieden and Kennedy, the agency behind award-winning ads for brands like Nike, Old Spice, and McDonald's is one of the most sought-after places to work.

"You look at the ballsy sh-- they put out … then you look away from the Adweek article and onto your sad Google Doc filled with subject line options for a Black Friday promo," one young advertising employee said of Wieden's appeal.

Not only is it notoriously hard to get a job there, it's an unconventional place to work. Current and former executives described what people should expect.

Wieden and Kennedy makes a point of hiring outsiders and encouraging them to explore

One of the first things people will notice about Wieden is the people. Unlike other agencies, it's known for hiring people from outside advertising, and is full of people with unique perspectives and personalities.

Former creative director Matt O'Rourke said co-founder Dan Wieden once summed up his philosophy by asking, "Why would I hire ad people?"

John Jay, now global president of creative at Japanese retailer Uniqlo's parent company Fast Retailing, had no agency experience when he came to Wieden from Bloomingdale's marketing department.

In another oft-cited example, Dan Wieden famously got secretary Janet Champ to work in the creative department; she later became lead copywriter for Nike and founded her own agency.

The agency embraces controlled chaos, few titles

Wieden is known for its unstructured brainstorming sessions. Executive creative director Karl Lieberman, who leads the team handling Bud Light, McDonald's, and Delta Airlines in New York, said leadership sees chaos as good for creativity.

Bud Light's popular "Dilly Dilly" campaign, for example, came from a conversation about how annoying it can be to have people bring six packs of expensive craft beer to a party.

"I was very organized and all about the process of advertising, from insight to manifesto to 30-second script," Lieberman said. "They weren't interested in any of that stuff."

Wieden and Kennedy also has a less traditional structure than other agencies.

For example, the Portland staff is organized in small teams called "pods" built around expertise like brand management and media strategy rather than by client. Lieberman said each pod functions as its own agency, with some handling multiple accounts.

The agency also has few executive-level titles. Lieberman said the idea is to let people focus on the work itself by minimizing approval processes and potential for tension between people.

Wieden and Kennedy puts a big focus on diversity

Wieden and Kennedy puts great emphasis on employee diversity, and has affinity groups for female, black, Asian, Latin, and LGTBQ employees along with podcasts like Affinity Talks and On She Goes, a travel-themed show launched by six women of color in the company's publishing department.

Halfway around the world, executive creative director Ian Toombs, who runs the agency's operations in Shanghai, said he tries to achieve a bilingual office by hiring local people and ex-pats who are willing to relocate to China.

The hours are long and pay isn't the top in the industry

Like every ad agency, long hours are the norm, but Wieden is unapologetic about telling people they will have to make sacrifices in the interest of the work.

One source who spoke on condition of anonymity said recruiters told him 60-70 hour weeks are "the norm," and Lieberman said employees may work over the weekend on campaigns that never get made.

Wieden is also known for taking creative risks for clients, even in a seemingly straightforward area like media buying.

Media director Lawrence Teherani-Ami said he expected people on his team to weigh in on other teams' work. He's also fired people who he said were quick to cite numbers in criticizing ideas.

Global head of talent Melanie Myers and Toombs also acknowledged that a job at Wieden and Kennedy doesn't bring the industry's biggest titles or paychecks, though Myers said the agency pays competitively.

In some ways, Wieden is like everywhere else. Lieberman said Wieden unquestionably makes some mediocre work. Myers said: "It can certainly have its own form of sh--show like any place can."