Hug Your Creative Director?

The New York Post ran a story this morning about how a hug in the workplace is making a comeback in service oriented and creative industries such as advertising. Really? Are you guys at Grey “hugging it out?” In any case, reporter Brian Moore lays out how and when is the best time to reach over to hug your co-worker or client.

David Lavietes, VP/Planning Director over at Digitas came out to Moore as a hugger. Yup, that’s right. He’s into the hugging. He told The Post that he thought that the: ‘“de-WASPification” of the workplace has a lot to do with the touchy-feely trend. When different ethnicities become better represented in the workplace, ambivalence toward hugging diminishes. “The reality is that most of these other cultures are more physical, and hug a lot more,” says Lavietes, who also sees a “backlash against the sexual harrasment stuff” that’s made offices too sterile.”

Lavietes didn’t let The Post print that he worked for Digitas. Instead the paper credits him as a planning director for a Manhattan based advertising firm. If he wouldn’t let them attach his company, then we’re wondering why he thought it was a good idea to drop such a crazy quote at all. Most of these other cultures? Who are you talking about David - Indians, Koreans, women or Carebears? Oh and the sexual harassment stuff? That’s still happening. See here and here.