Yes - it's almost reached cliche status these days to call the old marketing and advertising agencies "dinosaurs," but the more I interact with the all-star interns/future creative leaders here at Coexist, the more I realize that the term "dinosaur" could not be more appropriate.
I agree with the design scholars that preach how important it is to learn the basic fundamentals of any creative endeavor, but there is something interesting happening today. There is no such thing as a war-torn "interactive" design veteran that has amassed a 30-year history of amazing skills and breakthroughs in web-based marketing. With the blistering pace of today's technology - I cringe when I see local colleges offering majors in subjects like e-marketing and web development. The truth is, today's brand communication tools evolve just too fast to ever try and learn in a book. The most successful awareness tactics available today have only been around a short while.
Everyday, the boundaries from print to radio to television blur as the web continues to conquer all. It is the new breed of designers (oblivious to what is not possible) that are best equipped to harness this new creative/technology revolution. With the changing of the guard in full effect - today's younger interactive designers have never experienced the limits of traditional media (prey for the dinosaurs). They don't own pin strip pants and they don't always wear black. They just expect to take any creative marketing concept and be able to push it immediately to the appropriate audience in real time. They expect to track measurable results in real time. It is this limitless, "no excuses" pursuit of better ways to engage the end user that should get you as excited as we are in our efforts to grow the microagency.