If you work in a big agency, you might hear about "gang bangs" from time to time (probably too often). This unfortunate nickname refers to throwing multiple teams at an assignment (the number of teams might be as high as 15, but I'd say 5+ teams qualifies it as an official gang bang).
Although they can be potentially detrimental to the morale of the creative department (lots of wheels spinning, increased competitiveness, paranoia about other teams stealing ideas, etc), the gang bang persists because it can generate a lot of varied ideas in varied directions in a very short time. And because the quantity of ideas is so important in the initial stage of the creative process, agencies are usually willing to make this trade-off.
So if you're one of a dozen creative teams in a gang bang, what should your strategy be? Here are a few thoughts:
1) Try not to be intimidated. For young teams especially, the gang bang can be super stressful. I remember sitting in gang bang briefings as a junior, looking around the room at all the agency's all-star teams, and thinking, "Holy shit. That's our competition? We don't stand a chance." On top of that, you may be presenting work to an Executive Creative Director, a Chief Creative Officer, or the Chief Creative God of the Universe who you've never had any contact with. You're the underdog. You have nothing to lose. Be organized, professional, and bring your best thinking. Nobody's expecting the junior team to have the big idea in these things, so if you do...Poof! Rock stars. And view the experience of presenting to the ECD/CCO/VP/Gods as an opportunity to make a good impression.
2) Don't worry what everyone else is doing. Paranoia, that they're trying to take your ideas or that they have better ideas than you, is not helpful. Forget all that. Focus on your work.
3) Think sniper rifle, not shotgun. Focus on your best ideas. Whereas you might take a handful of ideas into a creative review (shotgun approach) when you're the only team working on it, the gang bang creates that range by design. Spend time generating ideas, but make sure you also spend enough time picking your best one or two and refining them. One fully realized campaign will fare better than a dozen half-baked ideas.
4) Don't overlook the obvious. Here's a pretty common experience: You have a good idea that's right on strategy, but you think it might seem a little obvious, or that all the other teams are going to have it, so you abandon it. You push on, off into the far reaches of the universe to find an idea that nobody else would ever think of. Then it turns out that another team did have your original idea, the one you abandoned, and the client buys it.
The fact that other teams are working on the assignment doesn't change your goal. Your goal is not to outsmart the other teams. It's to come up with the best concept for the brand. One that's right on strategy. Don't psyche yourself out of a spot-on idea.
5) Don't kill yourself if your idea isn't selected. Hopefully you put your best thinking forward and made a good impression internally. Offering to help contribute thinking to whatever campaign does go forward is usually a nice gesture. But whatever you do, don't get bitter or sad. Suck it up, learn something from the experience, and move on to better things.