Many people from adland might be thinking that now might be a good time to start their own shop.This episode features an interview with Meryl and Gaelan Draper who have been running their own shop- Quirk - for the past six years.They have built a niche for themselves in the world of video advertising with a focus on delivering performance- this focus has attracted them to a host of DTC clients- including- the likes of Third Love and Keeps. In the conversation we talk about their backgrounds- Gaelan comes from film and Meryl has experience in PR, but also ran the IBM global business for Ogilvy in Bangalore, India. We also discuss how the past six years have been about how they have been continuously optimizing which comes from listening to their clients and really understanding needs. 

Zeus Jones was founded in 2007 by former employees of ad agency Fallon. They wanted to do things differently and do different things- help clients come up with new ideas that could help their business, but those things were more action-oriented than word-based.Fast forward to 2020 and the company has a new generation of leaders and in the podcast, I get to speak to the Creative and Strategy Leads Jason Zabel and Elsa Perushek. We talked about how they work together as creative and strategist and how the company is driven by a collaborative work style and what that means for their roles and how they work with others.We also discussed how COVID challenges these workstyles and what they have been doing to adapt their working practices. 

Katie is currently the Senior Director, Global Brand Concept at Nike Women, It is her 7th job at Nike in her 7 years at the company. In the episode, we talk about a lot of things from her unconventional route into strategy, to the changing consumer landscape and the importance of opening yourself up to new experiences.Katie is unique in the fact she has worked at 180 and Wieden and Kennedy and both of their icon clients Nike and Adidas. She has also got out of the country and has had stints in Holland, Australia and Japan. Did I mention that she also worked for Droga 5?She believes the secret to success is getting the money/business end of the strategy right, once you have that down, you will have permission to be rebellious and creative. 

Kelli Robertson and William Esparza are partners and co-founders of Hyphenated which describes itself as a clandestine operation bridging companies and communities.Kelli is a strategist and William the creative. They both have impressive and extensive backgrounds at shops like AKQA, RGA, Goodby, MAL and have worked on their fair share of amazing brands like- Nike, Beats, Activision etc.They met while working together at R/GA and recognized the importance of the disciplines working together- seeing that it led to better work.In the podcast, we talk about what this means and what it takes for a strategist to be a creative advocate, ally, and enhancer. 

Ana was the first guest on the Inspiring Futures podcast and it was great to have her back on the show to talk about her new book- The Business of Aspiration.The book is all about a new way for marketers and strategists to think about the interaction and intersection of brands and consumers. How brand value is now found in social good and the power of niches which serve as distinct worlds and cultures which create their own brands, but places where bigger brands need to connect. We talked about the importance of curators as providers of knowledge for those consumers who want to acquire category and brand expertise. When it came to specific brands, Ana mentioned Patagonia driving is brand strength not just from its environmental credentials, but also from the power it has within a diverse set of outdoor niches, Tracksmith for its dedication and focus, not just to running, but a specific type of runner.The Business of Aspiration is going to be published October 27thIt can be pre-ordered on Amazon https://www.amazon.com/Business-Aspiration-Cultural-Environmental-Capital/dp/0367554402

A few weeks ago Jeff was a guest on my podcast and we talked about his take on the agency landscape, through the lens of his role as a PR person and consultant to agencies. At the end of the chat, Jeff mentioned to me that he also wrote books and had, in fact, written a couple. Hence- the 2nd pod- where Jeff talks about the process of writing and we go into the weeds on how this stuff gets done- the late nights, the editors, the re-writes, dealing with publishers and the marketing piece of the puzzle.It's a good listen for those who dream of writing the next great American novel or maybe just a book. 

Rob Campbell is a planner who thrives on being in the thick of the creative process. When it comes to creative work he wants to enhance it, inspire it, and nurture it. In the episode, Rob shares his philosophy on Strategy and some stories from his experiences which includes time spent at agencies HHCL, Wieden, and R/GA. Rob started out as a session guitarist - so he knows the creative process first hand. He was working with leading artists when he was just 18 years old.So, this is a must-listen if you are a strategist who is committed to inspiring better work and being intimately involved in the process. 

Lucy Jameson is one the best UK planners of her generation and has featured on Campaign's list of top 10 planners multiple times.She started her career at one of the founding agencies of the account planning discipline- BMP- where she stayed rising through the ranks for 19 years.She was one of a handful of leaders hired by Grey to transform the London office and operation, a task she succeeded in winning multiple new accounts, Campaign's Agency of the Year, and many creative and effectiveness awards. In 2015 she was made CEO of the shop.Prior to starting her own agency Uncommon Creative Studio-in 2017 with Nils Leonard and Natalie Graeme- she worked as an intern at Facebook and spent time in a tech incubator. Uncommon Creative Studio has worked with the likes of the WWF, ITV, Habito, and many others and is all in the business of building its own brands like Halo- a more eco-friendly alternative to Nespresso and a candle company which donates money to COVID related causes.In the episode, we talk about her career trajectory, her thoughts on planning, brands, and the approach Uncommon takes to clients and business. 

For the past 20 + years- Mark and Adam and the crew at Eat Big Fish have been helping brands to think like challengers, unlock the pirates inside and overcome constraints. They also happen to be the themes of the books that they have written about brands, internal cultures, and innovation.This is a consulting company that believes in doing the research to back up and build its thinking, frameworks, and tools. In the episode, I talk to Adam and Mark about how EBF came into being, how it thinks and works, and the purpose and role of writing and publishing books.Given the moment, we give some time to a discussion about a book they wrote 5 years ago - called A Beautiful Constraint which is all about achieving things against the odds when resources and barriers are put in the way of success. It seems like now is a time when companies will find a myriad of barriers that can in the way of progress. Through fascinating examples and tools- EBF shows how these barriers can be overcome. 

Tracey Faux Pattani is the recently hired CEO of BSSP.For Tracey, it is a return to an agency she last worked in 15 years ago.This is also her first agency CEO job - she joined the agency from Digitas SF where she headed up client service.To overuse, the cliche- these are unprecedented times, and certainly if you are a new CEO you want to be able to meet everyone in person both client and agency-side, but COVID has made this an impossibility. Instead, she only had the luxury of a week in the office before shutdown- making her a CEO who is forced to lead via Zoom.In the episode, I talk to Tracey about her experiences leading up to this position and what she has learned along the way from agencies with a variety of diverse working styles, cultures, and leaders like Lintas, Ogilvy, FCB, and Digitas. We talk about leading during COVID - how she does it and how she has had to adapt and her plans for the agency moving forward.