Marla Kaplowitz Engages Philippe Krakowsky At 4A's Decisions 2022

Context

Kaplowitz and 4A's have over 600 ad agency members who handle 85% of total advertising spend in the U.S. She works closely with her members and knows intimately what concerns they have about the present and future -- problems of fee levels, client churn, talent retention, talent acquisition, depressed salaries and managing the challenges of technology -- while dealing with the disruptions of the COVID pandemic.

As the CEO of a $9 billion diversified public corporation Krakowsky lives, breathes and manages efforts to seek solutions for industry problems, but there are limits to what any CEO can say in a public forum.

Within a few days of this session with Kaplowitz, IPG would announce its sterling 2021 financial results. IPG’s stock price had already increased by 54% since the day Krakowsky was appointed -- an astounding performance, bolstered by the 2021 resurgence of media spend in the industry. Krakowsky must have been musing, privately, how he could keep this performance going.

The Interview

Kaplowitz did not hold back in her questioning of Krakowsky. In an intense 25-minute exchange, she asked six key questions:

1. What do you view as the biggest challenge we currently face as an industry?
2. Can you talk a little bit about what you and your leaders are doing to address the talent retention and acquisition of talent?
3. What are your top one or two favorite myths [about the industry] that you believe we need to do away with?
4. You've said that you want IPG to be a high value business partner to your clients. How do you really articulate that with them?
5. What does the future agency model look like? How do you envision it evolving over the next few years? What do the next few years look like?
6. What do you see as the core growth areas for agencies?

Predictably, Krakowsky's answers were not entirely direct, nor were they evasive. They were truthful but general, staying within the limits that he felt he could comfortably speak about publicly. His edited responses appear below.

1. The biggest industry challenge? That's a really broad question. There are so many things that we need to focus on and, and make progress on, but I guess if I had to pull it down and try to kind of distill it into one thought, I would say that it's keeping pace with the changes that technology is driving in every facet of our lives. [He elaborated further on this theme].

2. The talent issue? We want our people to be in a company that innovates -- a company that cares about inclusion and diversity, a creative business that on the media side takes a point of view and a stand on media responsibility. So, it’s a mix of a lot of things. I don't think there's a moment where you can solve for this issue. We need to lean into things that we're thinking about -- the things that we need to prioritize.

3. The myths? I don't think about myths. I think we need to shine a light on the breadth and the depth of what we do. The sophistication and nature by which we integrate across data and technology and marketing services and creativity needs to be better understood. I don't think that collectively we get credit for this.

4. IPG as a high-value partner for clients? The economy's becoming more and more digital. That requires us to rethink how, as a company, we’re addressing or leaning into digital ways of working -- one-to-one interactions with consumers, putting information to work and using it to make informed decisions. We need to show up and be able to say that we can help address that range of issues, and that we sit in a place where we're the experts in a range of marketing services and disciplines.

5. The future agency model? The future agency is more precise, more impactful and accountable, with a greater ability to understand the audiences that clients are trying to connect with or impact or engage with. But it’s not one thing; there is no one future model.

6. Core growth areas for agencies? Healthcare’s been really strong, and I think it probably stays that way. There's opportunity for all our creative agencies because they're more and more connected. I think that some of the businesses that have been hurt by the pandemic, like the sports marketing business and the experiential business, provide opportunities. I don't see any places where you can't get to. There are many interesting places for growth.

No concrete solutions to the industry’s challenges were put on the table, but no one hearing the interview could doubt the quality of thinking and energy invested in finding a more stable and valuable future for those in the industry.

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