Agencies Of The Future

President & CEO of Double Forte Lee Caraher shares how simplicity and transparency have built love and loyalty for her agency amongst clients and employees alike. The agency is built to solve business problems through communications and they make sure every assignment stays true to that. After George Floyd’s murder last summer, she and her colleagues brought the same focus and tenacity to tackling their DE&I problem.  Listen and learn how they worked together to tackle this business problem.

In this episode, Kathy Bloomgarden, CEO of RuderFinn, shares her passion for serving clients and the constant learning that entails. Staunchly optimistic, Kathy has adopted a mantra of “What’s Next?” for the business.  She keeps the entire RF team focused on learning versus languishing and has committed to initiatives like Tech Lab and weekly reports to the leadership team to remain future-focused. Listen and learn more about how Ruder Finn will remain one of the world’s most successful agencies.

H&S is a small agency that delivers for big clients. Founder and CEO Elizabeth Harrison attributes some of this success to long-term efforts to ensure their staff represents their clients' diverse audiences. Today, the firm boasts a leadership team that is 70% diverse and has attracted and retained diverse talent at all levels. In this podcast, Elizabeth shares keys to success, which include being intentional about creating positive experiences for diverse employees.

Founder and CEO of Imre, Dave Imre says his idea of a successful agency is one where you are happy to see your colleagues every single day. But COVID and the racial justice movement forced this agency to rethink everything to take care of their employees. Listen and learn how Imre reengineered employee processes and offerings to continue an aggressive growth path and keep everyone smiling when they see each other -- be it in the office or over Zoom. 

Challenging times often expedite innovation and that’s what’s happened with IPG’s PR firms and the industry overall, according to Andy Polansky, Chairman and Chief Executive at the newly branded IPG DXTRA and Executive Chairman at Weber Shandwick. The organization he helms is built to provide clients with the expertise they need, when and where they need it. Culture and diversity are required to make it all work and that’s long been a focus at IPG, according to Andy. Listen in to learn more.

This time last year, who could have known how appropriate and necessary Teneshia’s new book would be? Published in November 2019, The Big Stretch provides step-by-step guidance for dreaming big and converting those thoughts and ideas into successes.  In this episode, Teneshia shares how she and her team put the principles in her book to work to drive winning outcomes for the agency and its clients through COVID-19, the economic downfall and the racial justice movement.

After his agency’s successful first decade in business, Kim Hunter celebrated by launching The LAGRANT Foundation (TLF) to provide financial support, mentorship, professional development workshops and employment opportunities to ethnic minority students entering the fields of advertising, PR and marketing. Twenty years later (Happy 30th LAGRANT Communications!), Kim and TLF have helped hundreds of students enter the field of communications. Through the agency, TLF, and his recruiting firm, which specializes in placing minorities in senior communications roles, Kim shares his insights into how the industry can be more successful in attracting and retaining diverse talent. 

As 2020 comes to a close, winners are becoming clear. AnnaMaria DeSalva, Chairman and CEO of H+K Strategies, isn’t going to claim victory but she does acknowledge that 2020 events accelerated the strategy she put in place upon taking the reins in 2019. Learn more about how her team leveraged their global network and heritage in issues and reputation management to deliver for employees, clients and their holding company. AnnaMaria also shares future bets she’s placing, including a strong focus on global DE&I.

A social awakening has put diverse audiences and diverse agencies in the spotlight. “It’s about time,” says Natalie Boden, founder and CEO of the Boden Agency. “The future is going to be about culturally rich communications.” Learn more about communications that speak to cultural truths of diverse communities 365 days a year – not just during special recognition months – as well as hear some truth spoken about how this super successful mother of three tries to be good to herself.

According to Melissa Waggener Zorkin, global CEO and founder of WE Communications, moving people to positive action has long been the global firm’s mission and the decades-long tenure of many employees and clients is proof positive.  Continuous reinvention and a laser-sharp focus on people and purpose over profit have been guiding principles for Waggener Zorkin and took her from a simple conviction that technology would change the world to becoming one of the world’s largest communications agencies.

What’s the secret sauce to M Booth’s many national recognitions, including being named by PRovoke as one of their North American Agencies of the Decade? According to Founder and Chairman Margi Booth and CEO Dale Bornstein, it’s equal part huge hearts and lots of smarts. For our podcast, this dynamic duo shares their philosophy that an agency is only as good as its people and that means demonstrating humanity in business and always putting people first. Listen in as they describe the importance of corporate and personal value alignment when it comes to finding the right firm – as an employee or a client.

Be inspired as Dwayna Haley shares how she has created a career path for herself and others. A beacon of leadership, Haley mentors young Black colleagues and steers Porter Novelli clients to focus on DE&I initiatives as a business and moral imperative. Haley values individual bravery: refusing to shy away from discomfort, asking the tough questions and demanding change. Her “North Star” of humanity and treating all lives well enables her to show up as her full self, every single day.

Allies take note: Young PR Pros – especially ambitious Black talent -- need your guidance and support. In this business of relationships, building them with mentors is critical. Equally inspiring to those who are new to the industry and seasoned professionals who want more diversity in the industry, Shelton and Braham share how mentors helped them learn and grow in the fast-paced agency world. 

Founder and CEO of travel and lifestyle agency LDPR, Davidson has stayed true to her mantra of only working with good people and good clients. For 25+ years, her firm has stretched the boundaries of PR, embracing new digital solutions and innovating services for its roster of international clients. Listen in as she discusses the key to organic growth, the value of networking, and her commitment to helping others, personally and professionally.

In a world where client counselors are facing unique circumstances every day, J.J. Carter, Global COO and President, Americas at FleishmanHillard, shares how the agency is coalescing expertise to successfully guide clients through the COVID-19 crisis. From quickly applying lessons learned by colleagues in Asia, to hosting daily office hours with the firm’s experts across all relevant areas – crisis and issues management, reputation management, labor relations, employee engagement, and others -- FH is bringing clients solutions for recovery, renewal and resurgence.

No proms, no graduations and no jobs - COVID-19 has rocked the world of the GenZ consumer but Devries Global’s survey of this cohort reveals opportunities for brands to earn their long-term commitment.  Jessica O’Callaghan, Regional MD for North America, and Loretta Markevics, Chief Strategy & Creative Officer, share why earned and influencer engagement are key vehicles to do it. Their data shows that as we move into recovery, digital will be less important and human interaction will become the priority.

Harnessing digital and data capabilities is critical to nurturing relationships in what Sells calls the “next normal.”  WE leveraged their heritage in technology and the opportunity to learn and plan as the pandemic first hit their China operations to guide the agency’s decision-making for the business and employees, as well as their counsel to clients on how to protect their brands. Learn more about how WE is helping client brands reaffirm their purpose and lead through this crisis. 

Al Golin built his firm on the conviction that public relations is an essential business function. In fact, McDonald’s, the agency’s first and still current client, didn’t make a move without checking with Golin first. Last year, the firm refocused on PR and Mardiks says the timing couldn’t have been better. Hear more about how this crisis is an opportunity for our industry to showcase how earned-first attention is at the center of everything we do.

Reinventing your agency has become a necessity during these difficult times.  Find inspiration and ideas in this pre-COVID-19 crisis discussion with Kathy Tunheim, CEO and Principal of Minneapolis-based Tunheim Partners.  With the agency marking its 30th anniversary, Tunheim shares several evolutions of the agency and how today she and her colleagues often take a unique approach of identifying a problem and then finding the clients to support the solution. It’s an exciting way to look at the power of discipline to solve the world’s biggest problems.

After a radical re-org created one Ogilvy, everyone is eager to hear how PR and earned-first ideas are functioning in this new world order. Melissa Smith, Managing Director at Ogilvy, shares how creative PR talent is working with capital “C” creatives who are more accustomed to the ad world. While colleagues who grew up in different disciplines have to learn each other’s languages, it’s more about walking halls and earning trust to ensure PR gets brought in early and often. Sound familiar? Tune in and learn more.