Ramiro Román

The COVID-19 pandemic no doubt forced advertising agencies to “go remote” overnight and the reality is that many will have done so successfully. For some, it may have dawned on them that it is the future of their business. I have no doubt that the pandemic will instigate a lot of progression, but there is a risk that it will simply be a momentary blip if the industry’s culture doesn’t change. The long-held belief is that working remotely is taboo.

Everyone is looking for those rare advertising luminaries—the “unicorns,” as they’re often called in our industry, because of their near-magical qualities and rarity. They’re the talent with innate abilities, craftsmanship, and instincts that make them perfectly suited to their disciplines; whether those are in creative, account or project management, strategy, science, editorial, or any of the other roles important to the functioning of our business.

I’ve had a rough start to 2019. On December 27, 2018, I noticed that my left foot was swollen. I went to see my primary care doc. He sent me to the ER. They admitted me. The original diagnosis was cellulitis. However, it turned out that the infection was deep in my foot. I had three surgeries to correct the problem. I was in the hospital for 14 days and went home hooked up to a wound vac. It took until mid-February for me to get unhooked from the wound vac and into a walking boot. It wasn’t fun.