100 lessons from one of Britain's most successful businessmen. Peter Mead's spectacular career in advertising began when he joined the despatch department of a large agency straight from school at the age of 16. He fell in love with the business and his ambition and drive led him in 1977 to co-found Abbott Mead Vickers, which grew into one of the industry's most respected and highly awarded agencies.
In 1995 AMV BBDO became the largest advertising agency in the UK, a position it has held ever since. Nice is Not a Biscuit distils the 100 most important business lessons Peter has learnt from his years at the cutting edge of advertising. It reveals the secrets of his success, and a lifetime's thought about the right way to do business in the creative industries (and beyond), in a series of short, utterly beguiling tips.
The tips range over leadership, happy companies; speaking truth to power; class; ambition and the pursuit of scale; politicking in the workplace; improving profitability, managing creative types, and lots more. He also includes inside stories of some of the most iconic advertising in the last forty years.
The book places the reader in the company of a clever, funny, wise, humane raconteur, whose vast knowledge is conveyed lightly, and in ways that make the reader want to listen and learn.
