Join us this Thursday, September 9th, the night of the Downtown Los Angeles Art Walk for Groop Showcase: an event featuring the work of one of our talented Groop members. This month we will be showcasing the work of Manny Garcia, a CALARTS graduate and member of the Groop network.

About the Artist:

Manny G grew up with his uncle airbrushing and designing movie posters right in his own backyard. Already with a natural inclination towards art, Manny knew working in design would be the best way to harness his abilities.

Manny attended CALARTS, starting out in print but quickly realizing the world of design stretched far past the horizon in medium and purpose. His interest: Art that faced no boundaries but had the ability to cause an effect or provide a solution. Since graduation Manny has worked on various projects creating visual identities and most recently created a whole world for FOCUS project, an online, interactive training program to help military families learn how to overcome the challenges of stress and deployment.

Manny hails from LA, roaming the streets of the Laker Parade and managing his trade at the Groop in the historic/gallery row district, hub for artists and suits alike. Constantly observing and critiquing the world around him, Manny applies his discerning eye towards his own constant sketching, music writing, and tattoos.

Tuesday, Sept. 14th
7:30 am to 9:00 am

Akasha Restaurant
9543 Culver Boulevard
Culver City, CA 90232

Come join us September 14th, 2010 at the renowned Akasha Restaurant for Groop Skool’s Executive Breakfast Series: “Digital ADD” Breaking Through. A panel of experts from some of LA’s Top media and entertainment companies will be discussing how to break through the clutter of today’s complex digital media ecosystem.

The breakfast will be held at Akasha restaurant located in beautiful Downtown Culver City’s restaurant row. Enjoy a locally grown, organic menu to the insightful discussions of our talented and experienced panel. Come prepared to jump in the conversation as we intend to answer all your questions on developing digital products that reach and engage today’s hyperactive users.

For more information or to sign up visit www.executivebreakfast.eventbrite.com

Thank you to everyone who came out to this educational and fun filled event, we hope you got a lot out of it and look forward to seeing you again at the next AIGA/LA event. That being said, the event rocked. We interviewed quite a few of you and believe we answered most of your questions, everything from budgets, scheduling, wire frames, browsers, user experience, collaborating with programmers and more. If you missed out watch the videos of Jose’s talk and view the presentation on how to move from print to web design.

As promised, you can find a template for user profiles in The Groop’s Welcome Kit Sample below:

For more information about upcoming AIGA/LA or The Groop events, contact Wesley at wesley@thegroop.net

Are you struggling with managing online products? Do you wonder where in the project things went wrong? Have you asked yourself if there is a better way to do this? We have been addressing these questions with our clients for 10 years and would like to share our experience and solutions with you.

A typical digital project consists of 6 distinct phases: The Idea, Project Initiation, Designing, Building, Releasing and Iterating. Let’s start with the First Phase: The Idea. During this first phase Executives often make some crucial mistakes that will determine the success of the entire project moving forward.

Here are the Top 3 Mistakes:

1. Wanting a product simply because your competitor is doing it

As media and technology continue to advance many companies are feeling anxious that they’re being left behind or not capitalizing on the next big thing. This “herd mentality” leads to jumping the gun and not defining what the problem was in the first place. In the end you’ll find you’ve spent a load of money developing a product that doesn’t serve a need. Even worse, you’re not quite sure what it does or how it will generate a revenue.

2. Not brainstorming with the rest of your team

With most corporate business models, planning consists of top down decision making. The top tier being management, who are often unclear of their own creative and tech team’s capabilities. Without considering the important aspects of the project on their end, expect a jungle of speed bumps, miscommunication and don’t even think about making it on time or budget.

3. Not knowing your users intimately

Defining who your users are may be one of the most important steps of your digital project. If you begin developing without determining the “for who” and why they should care, your end product will have no relation to your target users. Develop a deep understanding of your users, or your product might find itself without an audience.

Stay tuned for our next Groop Skool posts where we’ll introduce Groop Tools to help you avoid these mistakes. Remember, digital projects should be fun and engaging vs. frustrating and exhausting. (Really)

For more information about Groop Skool visit
http://www.groopskool.net

or contact Wesley at
wesley@thegroop.net

AIGA LA & Adobe Series: Moving from Print to Web Part 3- Interaction Design, Planning and Presentation
July 22, 2010 at Downtown Independent Theater

FOCUS (Families OverComing Under Stress) provides a training program designed to help military families learn practical skills to meet the challenges of deployment as well as create a happier, healthier family life. The Groop is translating this program into an interactive, online experience through FOCUS world. Parents, spouses and children will be able to explore tools, play games and learn from exercises designed by The Groop. The Groop has also recently launched their HQ website, where military families can discover the offerings of this amazing program.

Visit Focusproject.org

Jose Caballer and Channa Messer will be speaking at the Downtown Independent Theatre Thursday, July 22, 2010 from 6:30 pm to 10:00 pm to discuss and teach how to extend your print skills onto the Web. Held by the AIGA Los Angeles & Adobe, this series will cover Interaction Design, Planning and Presentation. They’ll be showing videos from Adobe Youth Voices and will be giving away a copy of Adobe CS5. This is the 3rd event in the series created by Kellis Landrum.

For registration and complete details visit

http://aigalosangeles.org/events/2010/07/aigala-adobe—moving-from-pri.php

The American Democracy Institute is looking for candidates for the 2011 Women’s Fellowship Class of the Pathways to Power program. The goal of the Women’s Fellowship Program is to foster the next generation of women and help them grow into leaders. The ADI is looking for women who possess:

1. A record of professional achievement
This might include receiving special awards or recognitions; early promotion; founding or starting a successful business/non-profit/program; playing a significant role in a project or campaign; etc.

2. Entrepreneurial spirit
This does not necessarily entail having founded a business, but rather the demonstrated ability to identify problems and seek imaginative solutions.

3. Evidence of good management and communication skills
We seek women who are skilled managers and communicators.

4. A positive and collaborative approach to leadership
A clear desire and ability to work with others to achieve results.

5. Motivation to grow personally and professionally and a clear commitment to enhancing personal growth and aptitude
Fellows should exhibit not only the potential for growth as leaders, but the desire to fulfill that potential.

6. Active citizenship with the goal of having a future impact on society
A demonstrated commitment to and personal interest in public service, as evidenced by involvement with a civic organization; community service; labor union; trade/professional organization; religious group; political organization; etc.

7. Professional and/or personal experiences that reflect an ability to manage challenges effectively and gain knowledge and understanding from these experiences
Fellows should be able to provide an example of a time in which they encountered a challenge or obstacle in their personal or professional life, and explain how they overcame it, what they learned from it and how they have incorporated that learning into their current practice of leadership.

If you believe you possess the qualities to apply for this fellowship, please email Christopher Nelson at

cnelson@americandemocracyinstitute.org

or visit http://www.empowerchange.org/page/s/2011fellows to learn more

If you have been working as a producer at a digital agency for a few years and the thought crossed your mind that “There has to be an easier way to do things” we have an opportunity for you.

The Groop is looking to pay you to learn Agile Project Management! in the “Groop Way”.

What you need:

1. To be a digital agency producer. For at least the past 12 months.
2. The burning desire to learn a way to do things easier without a million spreadsheets, countless long meetings, and pulling 80 hour work weeks.
3. To want to get paid to learn.

What we need:

1. Both a tactical and strategic leader that works well with clients and teams.
2. An excellent communicator both written and in person.
3. A cover letter with the “5 top reasons why I would rock at learning “The Groop Way” and a resume.

Please email our Groop Talent Coordinator at
alice@thegroop.net