June 18, 2026
What is something the industry isn’t paying attention to that they should?
AI. Just kidding, can we please stop making every conversation about that?
Right now, we are living through two of the biggest macroeconomic shifts in modern history; declining birth rates reshaping the family structures brands have built around for decades, and the largest generational wealth transfer ever recorded already underway. The whole map is being redrawn.
And yet so much of what I see is hyper-targeted content optimized for micro-moments, so specific that if you fall outside the bullseye, it’s completely invisible to you. I can’t tell you how much work I see that features influencers I’ve never heard of. Their target audience knows exactly who they are, but if I’m seeing it and I don’t, that’s a wasted moment. We’ve gotten so good at talking to slivers that we’ve forgotten how to say something that resonates across the whole room. And here’s the thing… because that room is fundamentally changing, this is the worst possible time for brands to be playing small.
The opportunity is enormous for brands bold enough to zoom out, think bigger, and create work that meets people where they actually are (or headed!). The ones that do and the creative partners who lead them there will be the ones defining the industry in the years ahead. The ones that don’t? They’ll probably target themselves into irrelevance.
What part of your role as a leader do you find most rewarding?
The ability to make things happen, for the business, for clients, and for the people on my team. I think of myself as the match that lights the fire. I bring a lot of energy, and I genuinely get fired up about what’s possible.
When a client shares their goals and a team member shares their dream, my brain immediately goes to: how do we make both of those happen in a way that also builds a healthy business? Because a healthy business means you get to keep doing the work you love. That loop- people thriving, clients winning, business growing – that’s where I like to live.
What is the very best career advice you’ve ever received?
It came from the incredible Lucy Farey-Jones when I was at Venables Bell + Partners. She could see I got antsy when creative teams would veer far from the brief, and she pulled me aside with some wise words about learning to trust the process.
She said: you set the finish line. They heard you. They understood. Now your job is to let them ride that wild creative bike, and stop running behind them holding the seat.
I think about that constantly. The best work of my career came from the moments I got out of the way and let brilliant people be brilliant.
Let’s build your future.
