Havas Media's Colin Kinsella: Four Principles for a Modern Agency and Agency Leader

Colin pictured at top points to four philosophies he39s followed throughout his career and that he says every Havas Media team member knows and followsamp160 quotOur job is to create actions and results in the marketplace for our clientsquot he explainsamp160 quotTo deliver on that promise a modern leader needs experience working in different disciplines in and around the media and advertising ecosystemamp160 A modern agency needs to be data forward social heavy creative connected and be committed to four principlesquotPrinciple No 1amp160 RespectquotAs an organizationquot says Colin quotwe39re focused on treating everyone with respectamp160 That means starting every meeting on time amp160and finishing on timeamp160 When our partners visit there39s no waitingamp160 We send thank you notesamp160 The best way to get people to be creative is to bring their true self to work and to achieve that we encourage a mutually supportive environment communicating listening and taking what is said in a positive contextamp160 In too many organizations too many groups try to kill each other39s ideas internallyamp160 In a creative organization focused on results everyone is engaged in the decisionmaking processquotPrinciple No 2amp160 Emotion and CreativityquotEvery decision a consumer makes is based on emotionsquot Colin explainsamp160 quotOf course our teams look at data but we also ask them to disconnect from the data to determine the emotional windows in which consumers are making their decisionsamp160 From a media perspective especially in programmatic models it39s difficult to assess how someone feels when they39re exposed to a messageamp160 For us it comes down to applying a creative lens and identifying what we can do to connect to consumers more creatively and in a more meaningful wayquotPrinciple No 3amp160 Cultural ChangeColin believes quotbringing your whole self to workquot includes having a meaningful life outside the officeamp160 quotDoing smart work is more important than working long hoursquot is a mantra he personally follows and encourages others at Havas Media to followamp160 He says communicating and sharing appropriate life details is part of creating a community destressing the environment and changing a culture which every modern organization and leader must be focused on todayColin extends his vision of cultural change beyond his organization to changing the culture of our industryamp160 As an example heamp160points to a recent new business win in the Havas Media Canadian operationamp160 quotWe received a note from the head of another agency that was a finalist for the businessamp160 39I don39t know what you did39 they wrote 39but we thought we crushed itamp160 I could not be happier for Havas Media to have found a formula39amp160 Our industry needs to push to be better support and learn from each otheramp160 Even when we lose good ideas create a better environment for us allamp160 Media companies and agencies should aspire for advertising and media to achieve their full potentialamp160 It39s not us vs themamp160 We must all be asking how we as an industry as companies and as individuals elevate the work we do and that39s all we should be thinking aboutquotPrinciple No 4amp160 Driving Growth for ClientsOur No 1 goal is to drive the growth and surpass the objectives and expectations of our clientsamp160 Our focus is on developing and implementing meaningful programs in the marketplace that consumers will react to and that will drive them to an actionamp160 When we put the notion of 39action39 into play it drives the creative and media decisionmakingamp160 What39s the idea who39s it going to influence what is the enduser experience the communications environment the mood and receptivity the meaningamp160 We not only want our clients to buy into the data but also what else we39re doing that39s adding creativity to their business our innate knowledge experience and ideasquotInnovation today Colin believes depends on understanding the fundamental shifts in brand loyalties and new marketing strategies required to effectively drive consumer actionamp160 quotHow do marketers talk to consumers and where should we be sharing their messagesquot he asksamp160 quotWhere should we be experimentingamp160 Suitcases mattresses beverages foods razors CPG brands even automobilesamp160 Havas39 proprietary Meaningful Brands study tells us that a massive 77 of brands could simply disappear and noone would careamp160 It39s quite stunningamp160 From a media perspective we need to better understand what media matters most to the audience and better leverage our clients39 budgets to connect with audiences in the best environment for the brandamp160 A GRP may be a GRP gross rating pointamp160but we can move commercials onto shows where the message is more connected to the context of the contentamp160 Making the brand feel more meaningful to viewers is keyColin39s history of success speaks to the effectiveness of his four principlesamp160 His career in advertising began in the 3980s after he received his BS from the University of Dayton and MBA from University of Chicago Boothamp160 He joined Foote Cone ampamp Belding spending 14 years in senior leadership roles including two in London heading business in Europe the Middle East and Africa and four years leading the FCB San Francisco officeamp160 Recognizing the explosion of technology he joined QuinStreet an early Silicon Valley lead generation and ROI innovatoramp160 He was soon recruited back into the advertising business spending nine years in senior executive roles at Razorfish President and Digitas NA CEO and then joining Mindshare NA as CEO before departing for his current role at Havas Mediaamp160 At each stop his agencies consistently captured new business agency of the year awards and notoriety for innovation and gamechanging strategiesamp160 Since joining Havas Media the agency has won Adweek and MediaPost Agency of the Year Digiday39s 2018 quotMost Innovative Culturequot and has been selected as one of the quotBest Places to Work in 2019quot by Ad Ageamp160 Colin39s leadership team has also been recognized among Adweek39s Media AllStars and Adweek39s 50 and some of Havas Media39s newest talent has won the 2019 US Cannes Young Lions Award for MediaHaving been at the helm of a variety of agencies in the marketing ecosystem has not only given Colin a unique perspective on the future of marketing but has also instilled in him the importance of a culture that fosters creativityamp160 quotBy embracing creativity in everything we do at Havas Media we can build more meaningful brands and drive better business results for our clientsquot he concludesClick the social buttons above or below to share this story with your friends and colleaguesThe opinions and points of view expressed in this content are exclusively the views of the author andor subjects and do not necessarily represent the views of MediaVillagecomMyersBizNet 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Havas Media's Colin Kinsella: Four Principles for a Modern Agency and Agency Leader

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Jack Myers

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Havas Media's Colin Kinsella: Four Principles for a Modern Agency and Agency Leader

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