We partner with you like no one else
The Difference
A number of groups specialize in producing traditional content, but few consistently have the caliber of writers, designers, and developers that elite organizations demand. A handful have the experience to produce the digital-first content that sets the most innovative content marketers apart. Very few have been on the client side managing freelancers and content marketing strategy, or can ensure you get the quality you expect. We partner with you like no one else, because we’ve worked inside organizations just like yours.
Our Team
We’re based in the San Francisco Bay Area, but our team of leading writers, editors, designers, and developers spans the globe. Collectively, we have worked on staff and as regular freelancers in business journalism and publishing, management consulting, and the social sector. We have also been consultants and marketing leaders. Contact us to learn more about the people in our network.
Past employers include:
Business Journalism and Publishing
Harvard Business Review
The New York Times
Time Inc.
The Wall Street Journal
The Financial Times
Strategy+Business
Bloomberg
Conde Nast
Money Magazine
Fast Company
Los Angeles Times
Management Consulting
McKinsey
Boston Consulting Group
Bain & Company
Deloitte
PWC
Accenture
Monitor
Global Business Network
The Social Sector
Stanford Social Innovation Review
California Health Care Foundation
Bridgespan Group
FSG Social Impact Advisors
Wikimedia Foundation
Gates Foundation
Wallace Foundation
Our Process
We have developed a deadline-tested process for creating high-level, high-insight content:
1
The Initial
Conversation
Every engagement begins with a free consultation. We take the time to learn about your goals, the potential formats you have in mind, and your expected timeline. We discuss the potential budget.
2
The Talent
Search
Once we agree to work together on a search, we begin looking for the right creative partner for your project. We don’t pull names from a huge database of freelancers and call it a day. We find the right fit. We know people’s strengths and expertise from working together closely on a host of real-world projects like yours.
3
The
Choice
We select a shortlist of potential partners and send you a summary of their credentials, their resumes, samples of their work, and the relevant costs. We then discuss your feedback and set up interviews with your top choices. Once you choose your creative partner, we engage them.
4
The
Kickoff
We can help structure the engagement, schedule a kickoff call, set up a schedule, and ensure the process goes smoothly. We take out as much project risk as possible.
5
Quality
Control
We’re hands on about quality. We provide detailed coaching and advice throughout the engagement, as needed. We stand behind the writers we represent and the work they produce—or we make it right.
How We Structure the Engagement
In exchange for a custom search of our high-quality network, for handling all the paperwork and billing, for derisking the project, and for our hands-on quality control, we build a fee into the total project cost commensurate with the value we deliver. For organizations that need to simplify their procurement with external contractors and agencies, we are part of vendor-management platforms such as UpWork Enterprise.
Our Leadership
Mickey Butts, Founder and CEO
Clients
Mickey’s clients have included:
Management Consulting: Boston Consulting Group, McKinsey Global Institute, Strategy+Business, Booz Allen Hamilton, Bain, Monitor, Deloitte, Accenture
Technology: Tanium, Google, Square, Intuit, Salesforce, Citrix, SAP, Mindjet, Netlist
Financial Services: Barclays Global Investors, Physic Ventures, Draper Richards, Crown Capital Management, BlackRock
Agencies: T Brand Studio of The New York Times, SutherlandGold, Catalant
Executive Search and Leadership Consulting: Spencer Stuart, Heidrick & Struggles
Universities: Haas Business School, Columbia Business School, Jack Welch Management Institute
Publishing Companies: Harvard Business Review Press, The Information, Jossey-Bass
Nonprofits and Philanthropy:
Stanford Social Innovation Review, Open Impact, Wikimedia Foundation, FSG Social Impact Consultants, Bridgespan Group, California HealthCare Foundation, Gates Foundation, the Wallace Foundation, Civic Ventures
Mickey Butts is a business editor, writer, and content strategist who has helped leading thinkers, writers, and organizations bring out the best in their ideas for more than 25 years. Thought leadership has taken the form of books, articles, data visualizations, case studies, white papers, courseware, and strategic plans with wide appeal.
His writing and reporting have appeared in publications such as Wired, Salon, Portfolio.com, The Economist, The Industry Standard, The Financial Times, Food & Wine, Parenting, and Sunset. He has collaborated with leading thinkers to write and edit articles that have appeared in Harvard Business Review, The New York Times, The McKinsey Quarterly, The Economist Intelligence Unit, The Financial Times, Fortune.com, Stanford Social Innovation Review, BCG Perspectives, and Strategy+Business, as well as bestselling business books published by Random House, Harvard Business Review Press, St. Martin’s Press, and Jossey-Bass.
Most recently he was a senior editor at T Brand Studio of The New York Times, as well as deputy editor at Boston Consulting Group, where he scaled up and coached BCG’s network of 28 high-performing freelance thought-leadership writers, managed the creation of innovative interactive and infographic data visualizations, and led the development of efficient editorial best practices. Previously as a senior writer at BCG, he wrote dozens of high-profile thought-leadership articles and reports on topics such as big data, digital technology, marketing, pricing, education, and social impact.
He was formerly a part of the launch team and an executive editor of The Industry Standard magazine, assistant managing editor of new media for Time Inc.’s Parenting magazine, and chief content editor for the Jack Welch Management Institute.
He has an MBA from Columbia Business School, a master of journalism degree from UC Berkeley, and a bachelor’s degree in comparative literature from Brown University. His portfolio is at his Web site: www.mickeybutts.com.
What People Are Saying About Mickey
We Create Thought-Leadership Content That Engages Audiences in Multiple Ways
Data Visualization
Infographic and interactive content that commands attention
Writing and Editing
Articles, reports, books, blog posts, and other written content that elevates your ideas
Multimedia
Experiential content like motion graphics, videos, and quizzes that deepen understanding
Content Strategy
Pipeline development, best practices, competitive analyses, and other means to reach your content marketing goals
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