Mind Games

By: Cheryl DahleWed Dec 19, 2007 at 12:10 AM

According to the people at Play, whose clients include some of the world's most serious companies, the best ideas come from playful minds. And the way to tap into playful minds is to play -- together.

"Play's energy, creativity, and willingness to push us was critical to the success of this project," says John Aman, brand officer for Nationwide. "The team at Play really stepped up the energy level significantly. What started out as a simple speech by the chairman became an event that this kind of change deserved and required."

For Play, the Nationwide project was an example of the power innovation has to shape culture. "We were especially excited about this project because of the opportunity to change business. We can change the way business does business," Spitzer says. "And if we can inspire, motivate, or instigate -- in whatever capacity -- companies to have those kinds of experiences through playing, we want to do that. It's part of our mission, and it's why I joined the company."

Play Is a Team Sport

It's 9 AM on Wednesday, three weeks after the initial session for the Weather Channel. The wallpaper team is in "potential crisis" mode. Hopkins, who's been shepherding the development of ideas since then, has drawn a small red flag next to the project on the white board. He'll be presenting the final ideas to the Weather Channel on Friday, and there's too much left to organize. He's not yet comfortable with what the team has fleshed out. No one is panicked. But it means that the rest of Play will kick up the intensity and pitch in, even if they're not assigned to that project. "That's just part of our culture," Page explains. "No one goes home before the owner of a red-flag project feels comfortable, no matter how long it takes. It's not an emergency -- yet. But it's a way for us to call for help and get support so it won't become one." Page takes a few minutes to clarify assignments. Hopkins is excused from the afternoon brainstorming session, and a couple of wallpaper team members shift tasks to free up time to help.

For Hopkins, who at the time had been with Play for a little more than two months, that was his first red-flag experience, and it left quite an impression: "People who were busy with other projects stopped what they were doing. Everyone in the office pitched in -- whether they were helping us refine the concept or running out to get lunch for those who were working. It was a sense of teamwork that I've never encountered before."

The intimacy of Play's culture is a direct reflection of its cofounders, Stefanovich and his sister, Christine Rochester, 43. The two of them started the company (originally as an events-marketing business) 10 years ago. Rochester was an experienced events planner, and Stefanovich, though only out of college for two years, had worked for the service-obsessed Ritz-Carlton hotels. But their high-touch approach began at home." My mom used to clothespin notes on my dad's suits every day," Stefanovich says. "She would also put notes in our lunches. She was always trying to make people happy."

Play's values today (people, play, profit -- in that order) are the result of the whole team's efforts, Stefanovich says. And it pleases him that the team clearly agrees. Earlier this year, he was named Entrepreneur of the Year by the state of Virginia. Stefanovich, Rochester, and Hammond went to the award ceremony not expecting to win. Caught at the podium without a speech, Stefanovich gushed in Sally Field - like fashion, "This is so cool." After the ceremony ended, the three went to the hotel bar and began calling coworkers. Employees and spouses started showing up -- more than 40 altogether -- to help celebrate the award. "People came from the gym," recalls Stefanovich. "Someone came by bicycle. Others came with their families. There was a sense that all of us should be really proud of ourselves. There was an honesty too: It wasn't just me winning an award. It was the entire team. We all had our arms around one another, saying, 'Look what we did! Look what we did!'

"After about the 20th 'we,' my dad glanced over at me and said, 'We. That's beautiful shit.' And he was right. It was the most powerful thing that I've ever experienced -- and it wasn't winning the award, it was seeing us win the award."

Robb Pair, 37, Play's shaman of stuff, has led the company's merchandising division since it began. He describes the 31-person outfit this way: "The company is almost like employee number 32. It has a life of its own. It has feelings, passion, emotion, and desires, just like an individual. Working at Play really gives me a feeling of 'no limits.' Risk is encouraged, and I have the chance to explore my potential and abilities."