1. The Death of the Department
Just ten years or so ago, things were different. Agencies required every department to report in full, almost independently of the whole company. They were keen to report all revenue and all costs by department. This would form the basis of their entire strategic thinking. It has changed in recent years. Of course, each department still has responsibilities, but a more holistic approach is now the norm. We no longer see each department driving agency decisions how they used to.
72% of all brands still feel strongly that agencies and processes need to change*. This change in mindset is, of course, because deliverables are changing across the board. Concerning deliverables, a 2019 survey by YouAppi found that 68% of agencies have shifted the focus to data, metrics, and analysis.
*Source: Creativebrief
2. The Work We Do
Agencies are moving their emphasis from customer experience strategies (CX) to business experience strategies (BX). The results have been remarkable. In a report by Accenture Interactive, it was found that leaders who adopt BX strategies are outperforming those who don’t by a factor of more than six. It seems that the more holistic approach by BX is beneficial.
The agencies that are successfully adopting these approaches are reaping rich rewards. By keeping an open mind, and adopting this more holistic approach, agencies of all shapes and sizes are benefitting. People need to be more agile and cross-functional in their work. There has been a definite move away from vertical structures toward horizontal structures.
3. Business Experience Strategies
In recent years there has been an increase in systemic self-evaluation. Businesses are looking honestly at how they operate and what tasks are necessary to develop business growth and optimize their businesses for the future. These developments have been growing steadily for the last decade.
Collectively these changes have meant that we are seeing agencies reorganizing, restructuring, and simplifying their operations; this is happening across the board, from major players to small agencies.