Where to start?
Let's go with recently...
In the Good CEO session yesterday, we did a bigphat exhaaaaaale.
For many, this was another flatline year.
For come, it was their first year of 20%+ margins returning.
But everyone agreed, this has been a year of figuring out who we are again and how we can return to growth.
It's really tempting to say you're growing every element of your business.
People, profits, purpose and a fat dollop of 'innovation' or acquisition for some.
But just like when we set 5 flippant New Year's resolutions, we know that focusing on one thing usually leads to a stronger chance of success.
I know the other dance well.
You set out with 5 or so OKRs.
Do a big launch day, then crack on with your day jobs, forgetting about most of the changes you wanted to make.
2025 feels seminal to me.
Like we're settling with some clarity since the Covid-recession-election frenzy.
Brands are picking a lane.
Businesses are telling employees what they expect from them again. Kinda.
The smart agencies are tying commerciality to creativity.
Indie agencies are punching harder than ever.
And as a result, PE is sniffing around creative businesses to buy and build and buy and build and buy and build.
(Brace yourself for the mid market roll ups)
So, I really want to get this year right.
I work up this morning thinking...
What one thing can I commit to growing next year? And not get tired of?
Then I thought, I wonder if everyone's answer would be the same...
And then I thought, I'm gonna ask my good CEOs what they're focused on growing and how they're going to do that next year.
You can do the same.
Borrow if from here to spark some new thinking.
Steal it unashamedly.
Or totally ignore that this ever landed in your inbox.
Here's mine:
Next year, I'm growing my clients.
I'm growing how we offer them a deeper, better service.
I'm growing who we work with.
And I'm focused on growing their business.
Profits, culture, territories, headcount, it doesn't matter.
All I care about is making a positive impact that leads towards the destination my clients are trying to reach.
Whether that's through hiring, acquihiring, or acquiring.
So I asked 6 unaffiliated CEOs...
- What are you focused on growing next year?
- How are you gonna do that?
Here's what they said 😀
Hattie Matthews, Co-Founder & CEO, Uncharted
- What one thing are you focused on growing in '25?
Grow our ability to lead brands into culture with confidence.
- How are you going to do that?
- Cultural Insight: Building relationships with the right teach partners, plus developing our own methodologies and tools to gather insights and forecast cultural trends.
- Diverse Talent: Bring in talent who genuinely live and breathe the cultures we're connecting with, to ensure our work is authentic and impactful.
- Unlock Creative Opportunities: Help brands shape and contribute: Help brands shape and contribute to cultural moments and movements that drive connection and brand growth.
James Greenfield, CEO & Co-Founder, Koto
- What one thing are you focused on growing in '25?
I am focused on growing growth.
- How are you going to do that?
Too much of creative services is stuck in a passive receptive mode, still waiting for the phone to ring. I want us to get out there more and really convince the world about the continued importance of brand in a marketing-first world. To do that, I will need to change our approach a bit. I am looking forward to it.
Dan Hocking, COO, Beautiful Destinations
- What one thing are you focused on growing in '25?
I'm focused on growing our capability.
- How are you going to do that?
- Growing our creator network and our ability to innovate with the way we make content.
- Growing our audience of passionate travellers to share this content with.
- Growing our brand and scale globally to address our client needs irrespective of territory.
We should be better known than we are, but focusing on the above will help us do that-and continue to be the innovator in creating content that moves you to travel like we are.
Alex Bec, CEO, It's Nice That
- What one thing are you focused on growing in '25?
Next year, I'm focusing on growing the support we give to the creative community.
- How are you going to do that?
- Relaunching and expanding our social enterprise, Creative Lives in Progress.
- Expanding the capacity for underrepresented, emerging talent at our events by 50%.
- Growing our reach in the USA.
All laddering up to our overall Residence vision of 'Empowering Creative potential at a time we all need to be doing more for the incredible talent in our industry.'
Sally Oldfield, MD, Accept & Proceed
- What one thing are you focused on growing in '25?
Next year, I'm focused on growing a better narrative about how creativity propels growth.
I really want to push myself, and I hope also my peers, to do this better than perhaps we have as an industry in recent times. And by growth, I don't exclusively mean economic uptick, although that would be a welcome thing for UK PLC; a place where creativity is only sometimes recognised for its contribution and accretive qualities. And by creativity, I don't exclusively mean conceptual or visual brilliance obvs 🙄.
- How are you going to do that?
- Heading into the wilds of a new role and exploring the value of creativity beyond the little bubble I've been in.
- Deliberately diversifying the creative realms in which I work and think.
- Seeking further opportunities to increase creativity's impact and influence.
- Tacking the "ick" thing that occurs for some when creativity is associated with commerciality-and going harder on it.
- Navigating the "can AI be creative?" debate, which I fully welcome.
For me, creativity = progress. And we really need this in a world (and industry) where we can be reasonably accused of standing still, while also enshittifying the stuff we thought was progress.
If creativity is both a form of freedom and value, and something which everyone has inside and deserves, then I want to make that more important than ever before. So, expect some spicy LinkedIn posts or other deliberate public acts.
Toby Southgate, ex Global CEO Forsman & Bodenfors
- What one thing are you focused on growing in '25?
I got held back this year by 2 things - dancing around hunches and taking time to build consensus around decisions I KNEW intuitively needed to be made. Waiting caused more problems. Action and decisions create momentum. I'll be reminding myself of this as I kick into the new year/new gig. Every day.
- How are you going to do that?
I'm going to spend more time next year on side hustles, because I've seen - honestly through this group, and an advisory board I sit on - the IMMENSE and disproportionate benefits they provide. Part therapy, part inspiration, part networking. I've loved it.
2 Things Heard From 1000 Conversations
Every week, my team has 250 honest conversations with creative leadership humans.
Here's what I'm hearing:
- Talent tells us that clarity is the main reason they leave their agencies. From days in the office to overall objectives to their own growth. If you could do one thing next year, it's be clear with everyone on what you're expecting from them. And tell them what they can expect from you.
- Cannes Lions: (ALREADY?!) Expect to see more design representation at Cannes Lions this year. We're predicting this year to feel more like D&AD than SXSW. If you're a design led human, head out there this year as you'll be the BNOC.
THANKS GUYS
I write these emails for 3 reasons:
- Because as a CEO, you might be having a tough time and this might just make you feel less alone.
- Because you might see something in here that helps you do your job 1% better.
- Because it might just remind you to brief my talent consultancy, UNKNOWN on a specific, tricky or straight down the line hire/team build that'll grow your business.
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