There was no clear plan for what we were going to do if the war began. We met several times with the whole team before the start of the war and discussed different scenarios, trying to do everything to minimise panic. Everyone was ready for the worst in their own way. Many on the team talked about assembling an alarming suitcase in case of war, but no one understood the scale. Everyone hoped for the best.

On the morning of February 24, we first made sure that every one of our team was safe or heading to a safe place. Then we contacted all our clients to make sure they were safe too. Later we called everyone to talk, share experiences and support each other. We try to be in touch with everyone, we communicate both about work and everyday events. It is important that clients understand that we are ready to support them with our resources.

If you re-read the agency's chat, you can say that everyone met the war boldly. At first, there was a slight panic. However, later everyone came to their senses and began to act. We were constantly in touch. 

From the first day, people began to move towards safer places: some went straight to the west of the country, some to the Kyiv region, and cities near the capital. Everyone helped each other with finding safe places. Between March and April almost the entire team was outside the capital. Daily zoom calls and work chats helped us stay in touch. We already had worked remotely mode during the pandemic, so this situation was normal for work processes. 

Today most of our team members are already in Kyiv, so we’re partly back in our office. Zoom calls are part of our everyday work communication because our team is still scattered around the world. For example, Ira, our creative director, is now working from Canada.

The emotional component is also taken into account. War is very hard. Everyone understands this and respects each other's condition. It helps a lot just to hear each other, talk on different topics, support, grieve, or laugh together. Now we are a family! It is easier to live through such a difficult time when the family is around. 

IAMIDEA is a creative agency. Сoming up with and implementing ideas is what we do best. In today's circumstances, creativity has taken on a different form. However, the war has only added fuel to our passion. Now, creativity for us is a tool to help our country. Because of that principle, our agency works in three key areas. 

The first is the information army. On the third day of the war, we became part of the WAW - War Against War organization. This is an information army that covers the crimes and events of the war for Western countries, politicians, and Western media, encouraging them to take certain actions. We make a lot of content to support our country, our soldiers, and all Ukrainians. A week later, WAW received accreditation from the Ministry of Culture and Information Policy, articles began to appear on ADWEEK and The Rolling Stone. Everything being done is having a big impact.

The second area is support for Ukrainian businesses and our clients. As soon as we were able to restore the working resource, we immediately contacted all clients and said: “We are ready to work for you. What can we do now? We do not require payment. There is a possibility - it's good, if not - it's okay”. The goal is to keep the business afloat in order to support the country’s economy.

The third area is foreign projects. There are very few of them because we deliberately worked for the Ukrainian market and declared that our goal is the development of Ukrainian companies and the economy.

It remains so, but we understand that, first of all, we need to keep the team and maintain working opportunities. That is the main reason why many Ukrainian agencies, including IAMIDEA, are trying to enter foreign markets. For Western agencies it can seem like an unwanted situation – new competitors entering the market. But I see this not as an opportunity to compete, but to cooperate. Our industry is known for being one of the harshest, where the tasks are endless and the pressure is immense. With the new creative power coming from Ukraine we can make the industry a better place, just by working together with an agency or company that is willing to cooperate. The partnership can move us forward together and contribute to market development. I believe it is possible to create a new, better environment within the industry in which everyone would benefit.

At work, everything is about the same as before. There are tasks, briefs, deadlines, a specific workflow, statuses, and more. All departments work as before, except for the tasks in the information troops, which are divided in different ways. It is possible that strategists are looking for video editing content. This is normal because everyone wants to be useful.

The only thing that has changed is the speed. We do everything much faster. We rework some stages and change something to optimise the time and resources of the team. Even the stages of the document flow are greatly simplified on both sides.

We just agree and do, and everything else is formal stuff. It's great when there is trust between everyone. This is especially important in our time.

Find out more about IAMIDEA: https://iamidea-agency.com/

Find out more about WAW: War Against War: https://www.instagram.com/waw_war_against_war/?igshid=YmMyMTA2M2Y=