Why Agency Makeovers are Difficult

We accept the imperfect hierarchies in which we workamp160 There are those above us some of whom are inspiring and others below us some of whom get the job doneamp160 We hope to move up through recognition and luck and if weamp8217re human we hope our enemies and the dopes that drag us down will failStability is what we seek and change when it is thrust upon us is the enemy of stability much to be feared and resistedamp160 Change looks a lot like chaosamp160 With change our corner of the world may be wiped outamp160 Our skills and experienceamp160 Devalued or forgottenamp160 Our network of relationshipsamp160 Altered in uncertain waysamp160 Our sense of confidence about the futureamp160 Shakenamp160 Our economic prospectsamp160 At riskamp160 Ever since amp8220shareholder valueamp8221 became the dominant corporate mantra and CSuite salaries went through the roof change has been everpresentamp160 In manufacturing domestic supplier relationships were ditched as lowercost global suppliers were identified and securedamp160 This gutted domestic manufacturing employment in permanent ways and destabilized the lives of skilled and unskilled workersDownsizings are routine and corporate loyalty seen as a quaint concept of the pastamp160 Companies in lowergrowth industries boost earnings and margins to maintain the inflated expectations of Wall Street and the extraordinary CSuite salaries that they supportamp160 Marque advertising agencies have been particularly hardhit by downsizings caught as they are between feecutting clients and performancedemanding holding companies Fewer agency people are now left to deal with growing Scopes of Work This has been a feature of agency life for more than two decades It is neither good not bad It just amp8220isamp8221 and the imbalance among fees workloads and resources has reached crisis proportionsThere are changes that cannot be avoidedamp160 Globalization of brands the rise of procurement the innovation of digital and social media the demographic takeover by Millennials the rise of ecommerce Amazon in particular and the success of Google and Facebook scream at the advertising industry Change or dieamp160 What youamp8217re currently doing is not workingOrganizations cannot volunteer to changeamp160 Organizations resist change for all the reasons described aboveamp160 Change is the enemy of stabilityamp160 However change and instability can be tolerated for the credible promise of a stable futureamp160 This is where strong leaders are required the agency CEO and the top management teamamp160 The leaders need to articulate a vision of the future and provide strong and unwavering personal leadership that convince the organization that future stability will be achieved despite the current chaosamp160 What does not work are forceful calls to amp8220embrace core valuesamp8221 or amp8220become even better at doing what made us great in the pastamp8221amp160 Agency leaders whose vision of the future is amp8220better creativityamp8221 and amp8220more successful new business winsamp8221 are wasting their time and squandering their credibilityThe temptation to go down this road is obviousamp160 Agency CEOs are insiders not outsiders and they have accumulated their vision of success from the pastamp160 Success for the future is outside their experienceamp160 There is a need then for creativity in designing the futureamp160 This kind of creativity requires analysis logic observation vision and inspirationamp160 The rearview mirror is not a useful toolFor the future agencies need to refocus on their clientsamp160 Clients have many unmet needsamp160 Brands are not growingamp160 Millennials remain a large and uncomfortable mysteryamp160 Amazon Google and Facebook have supplanted traditional channels of communication and salesamp160 Content to date is not delivering marketplace successamp160 CMOs are strugglingAgencies that commit to solving clientsamp8217 brand performance problems can create a sustainable future for themselvesamp160 This requires a new statement of missionAgencies that insist on being paid for all the work they do and can assure that the work will deliver positive results will have improved economics and a sustainable futureamp160 This requires that SOWs be documented tracked measured and negotiated requiring new operational practices and SOW systems like ScopeMetricsamp174Agencies that require Account Heads to be accountable for fees workloads and resources will have stronger management teams Todayamp8217s overservicing practices need to be abandonedamp160 This requires new policies practices and trainingThese three dimensions can be used by agency leaders to define an agency futureamp160 At present though this is mere theoryIs stronger leadership required todayamp160 Without a doubtamp160 In practice the agency future remains undefinedCartoon creditamp160 William Hamilton The New Yorker The Cartoon Bank With permissionClick the social buttons above or below to share this content with your friends and colleaguesThe opinions and points of view expressed in this content are exclusively the views of the author andor subjects and do not necessarily represent the views of MediaVillagecomMyersBizNet Inc management or associated writersamp160amp160

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Why Agency Makeovers are Difficult

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Michael Farmer

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