Is Publicis AI project Marcel going to be an ‘80,000-person circle jerk’?
When the dual imperatives of protecting confidential information and providing essential security dawn on Publicis, they will discover that Marcel is destined to become not much more than a massively expensive and technologically elegant next generation version of a conference call – argues Bob Hoffman
Publicis CEO Arthur Sadoun made big headlines last week with his announcement that he’s taking the $20 million they piss away at Cannes every year and sinking it into an artificial intelligence gimmick called Marcel. The goal of this AI system is to connect all 80,000 of Publicis’ employees for the purpose of universal access to information and collaboration. You can learn about it on this video cliché-fest.
According to Chip Register, co-CEO of Publicis.Sapient:
“In a group of 80,000 people … how can we assemble that team and allow that team to work and collaborate virtually to bring the best ideas and values we can to a client at a moment’s notice?…The use of technology enables great creative work. It enables the connectivity of people… It enables teams to work and it enables ideas to generate, be shared globally and virtually, through the use of better insight in culture and the journey of human beings.”
Let’s forget the “human journey” horseshit for a minute and talk about the practical use of Marcel. We know that digital security is a cruel joke. We know that hackers have gotten into White House systems, CIA systems and just about any system they want to hack.
What I want to know is, how is Publicis going to protect the ideas and information accessible through Marcel from every hacker and every rival agency, and marketing entity, on the planet? But let’s give Publicis the benefit of the doubt and stipulate that they have better cyber security than the White House. How about the internal issues?
Let’s say Publicis is pitching Coca-Cola or General Motors or Unilever or any large global brand. Do they really expect us to believe that they are going to put essential brand strategy, creative work and media ideas into a system that can be accessed by 80,000 people all over the globe? Do they really want to tempt some intern or junior planner with Marcel access to sell critical information to a rival agency?
If they’re not going to put essential information into the Marcel system, what use is it? How can it enable “ideas to generate, be shared globally and virtually” if they’re not, um, shared globally and virtually? And how about their current clients? Do they really think their clients are going to want proprietary information they give to Publicis to be within reach of 80,000 employees, any one of whom may skip to a rival agency or rival brand tomorrow?
But if they don’t put proprietary info into the system, how can they possibly “assemble that team and allow that team to work and collaborate virtually to bring the best ideas and values we can to a client at a moment’s notice?” No company in its right mind puts sensitive, critical, or proprietary information into an email. The same will be true of Marcel.
One of the key attributes clients expect from an agency is mature and discrete handling of confidential information. Not an 80,000-person circle jerk. When the dual imperatives of protecting confidential information and providing essential security dawn on Publicis, they will discover that Marcel is destined to become not much more than a massively expensive and technologically elegant next generation version of a conference call.
Bob Hoffman has been the CEO of two independent agencies and is the author of the Ad Contrarian blog
You had me at, Chip Register
ReplyI see their committee is missing one real power player in the publicis asia network…without the inputs of the CEO of Saatchi, Leo Burnett and Publicis Singapore, they can forget about this being a success.
Replyba-dum ching!
ReplyThe irony here is over level 80,000! Publicis is among one of THE WORST culprits of choosing and prioritizing money/profit over creative ideas, creative people, and creative excellence, them being a publicly traded holding company and all…sounds familiar? Foot meet mouth.
ReplyAnd yet here is the Publicis groupe trying to do something to move agency model into the future while agencies like, erm lemme say ‘a big WPP player locally’ continue to push ‘initiative’ work into award shows, ‘creative’ entries into agency of the year awards and to watch their margins, office size and client list shrink.
Good on Publicis for not thinking that awards will secure the future, I wish them every success. Because the Singapore industry is a sinking ship and new ideas should be welcomed. Still haters and all
ReplyReally – the Singapore CEO? I’m sorry, but what has Publicis and their little “innovation agency” really done in Singapore and the region beyond the traditional advertising and content piece. Once again, agencies are trying to get into the technology space, without truly understanding how to build. Insights and cool are awesome – but you have to be functional. Publicis Singapore is not. Sapient Nitro – now they should be involved in the conversation, globally.
ReplySapient Nitro definitely is quietly doing some great stuff. Publicis needs to move the needle in Singapore. Their new Head of Social seems pretty promising, but I don’t know what the rest of their leadership are doing, beyond the “thought leadership” and speaking opportunities.
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