Kimberly-Clark reshapes marketing to fit a digital world. Diageo scraps its marketing innovation unit and hands control of testing new media and digital strategies to brand teams. P&G abolishes marketing directors, changing the title to brand director as it ups its focus on brand building… Just three global giants tackling the challenge of transforming marketing models in a time of unprecedented pace of change – and one where customer experience is king. We believe that understanding and harnessing new marketing models will deliver unprecedented opportunities for brands, agencies and customers alike. So, for insights and inspiration, we have gathered together highly-respected leadership for our next Club event. Joining me on stage are four outstanding individuals from the client and agency world who are driving model change: • Philip Gladman: Marketing and Innovation Director Africa, Diageo, innovator behind Diageo’s much-admired global new partnership model • Ian Armstrong: Global Marketing Communications Director, Jaguar, successfully tapping into and developing a parent-owned agency to create marketing efficiency while enhancing creative output for the brand • Abi Comber: Head of Marketing, British Airways, who has led the flag-carrier’s brand back into public favour with a new model placing the customer at its heart • Ben Fennell: CEO, BBH, considered one of the most innovative and accomplished global business leaders today

1. Oystercatchers
Club
Takeaways
Shaping the new
brand/agency model
October 2014

2. Oystercatchers Club: Shaping the new brand/agency model
To what extent have clients and their agencies found a workable model to cope with rapid
technological change?
Our Oystercatchers Club event, hosted by Oystercatchers’ Co-Founder Peter Cowie, debated
this hot issue with some of today’s brightest marketing leaders.
Interesting insights and salient trends emerged....

3. The Panel
Abigail Comber
Head of Brands
and Marketing
British Airways
Ben Fennell
CEO
BBH
Ian Armstrong
Global Marketing
Communications
Director
Jaguar, Jaguar Land
Rover
Philip Gladman
Outgoing Marketing
& Innovation
Director Africa
Diageo
Peter Cowie
Founder Partner
Oystercatchers
Chair

4. Takeaway 1: Marketers will struggle with agency specialisms
As channels and agency specialisms multiply, the job of the marketer becomes akin to that of
ringmaster.
“Marketing departments struggle with the proliferation of agency specialisms that result from
technology-driven marketing . It’s unfeasible for marketers to manage five to six agencies on
one brand”. Philip Gladman: former marketing and innovation director Diageo, Africa

5. Takeaway 2: So less is more...
Last year Abi Comber, British Airways’ head of marketing, went further than just thinking
agency consolidation is inevitable.
She initiated a seven-month review of the airline's marcoms strategy.
This led to all BA’s advertising, loyalty and CRM work being bundled to a single agency: BBH.
“We were not getting integrated thinking and I wouldn’t [expect to] get it if I briefed multiple
agencies. We used to spend a lot of our time bringing everybody together rather than on the
actual issues … now it’s far more about ideas, not advertising.” Abi Comber, head of
marketing, British Airways

6. Takeaway 3: ...but don’t clients still need the specialists?
“Connected specialisms’ is the answer to the client conundrum of having to choose
between agencies that offer in-depth specialisms or wider, integrated offerings.” Ben
Fennell, CEO, BBH.
To win BA’s consolidated business, BBH had to absorb a raft of new skill sets by creating a
joint venture with digital CRM specialists Seven Seconds.
What did Ben learn from the experience?
The value of “acknowledging what your core competencies are, what you can change and
what you can’t. We failed at lots of things over the years, usually when we’ve tried to do
everything ourselves without partnering with brilliant people.”

7. Takeaway 4: Agencies should have ‘skin in the game’
Billionaire financier Warren Buffett coined ‘skin in the game’ to encourage senior
management to invest their own money in the companies they worked for...
“Should agencies do likewise?”Lizzie Penny, managing partner and managing director
Futureproof
“Yes” Ian Armstrong, global marketing communications director, Jaguar, adding that his
company’s individual and group performance remuneration process “forces the agency
system to be self managing”.

8. Takeaway 5: The ‘in-house’ agency: is arms-length is best?
At Hovis, Philip Gladman has gathered a team of former Diageo planning and shopper
strategists to help "jump-start” marketing and deliver "breakthrough innovation opportunities”
in the bakery category.
Jaguar’s dedicated agency Spark44 has been firmly embedded in the business since launch in
2011.
A joint venture, Spark44 is a separate legal entity, based externally. “It’s like a normal agency
relationship ...we push hard on both sides and challenge on both sides” Ian Armstrong, global
marketing communications director, Jaguar

9. Takeaway 6: Clients can ignite the ‘burning platform’
Philip Gladman: clients need “more burning platforms” to speed up the pace of change.
Ben Fennell: clients themselves are often the agents of that change. “There is a boldness
in terms of how you reinvent when you’re in lose-a-huge-client-back-against-the-wall
situation”.
Ian Armstrong on the need for agility: the marque’s relationship with Spark44 has been
“fine tuned when it needs to be” with “challenges on both sides,” not least the handling of
local client needs, given the overarching brief from Jaguar Land Rover’s CEO, Ralph
Speth, to “help shape our organisation”.
“But we try and remain agile enough to move [the model] where it needs to move”.

10. Takeaway 7: No one model fits all
As far back as 2010, business analysts Forrester concluded :“No type of agency is perfect for
the new era’.
Stephen Maher, Marketing Society chairman and chief executive of MBA: there will never be
just one client-agency model.
And the panel agreed.
Ben Fennell wrapped up: client-agency models ‘ set up to collaborate and not to compete’
would win through.
Written by Noelle McElhatton. Journalist and former editor of Marketing magazine

11. Who are Oystercatchers?
Oystercatchers are experts in accelerating marketing performance, providing a wide range of specialist consultancy services
to deliver the optimum model for marketing excellence.
Our Services :
We provide a wide range of consultancy services and transformative insight, born from unrivalled industry expertise.
Marketing Model:
We recommend the brand / agency model that will deliver the best marketing results for your business.
Partnership:
We improve and retain your current agency partnerships through OptimiseTM, our proprietary evaluation methodology.
Pitch:
We ensure you receive the optimal agency partners to accelerate marketing performance.
Ways of working:
We help you to achieve optimal ways of working, through efficient processes and rigorous financial analysis.
Training:
Our faculty of inspirational trainers transforms people who work in marketing into marketing practitioners who work in
centres of marketing excellence.

12. Like to know more?
If you would like to understand more about Oystercatchers and our Club,
Suki Thompson, our Co-Founder and CEO, would be delighted to talk to you:
suki@theoystercatchers.com
+44 7957 208 040
www.theoystercatchers.com

13. Thank You