The Agency Advisory

A slightly shorter newsletter this week thanks to an unpleasant bout of covid. Perhaps it has been the fact that I’ve been feeling sorry for myself this past week, that I have leant into more wellbeing and leadership topics in this issue. In particular, thoughts on why taking a rest is not quitting, and how to spot the signs of burn-out. In moments of reflection, it’s always good to look at the role and skills needed by leaders and to better understand workplace culture types. Both topics that are covered here. Combine this with tips on managing remote teams, the frustrations with hiring, and how to get out of the agency short term growth mindset, and you have issue #36 of The Agency Advisory.

 As always, a massive thank you to all the original contributors for sharing their knowledge and expertise.

 Housekeeping alert: From November, I am going to test moving the distribution date of The Agency Advisory from 08.00am Monday to 10.30am Tuesday.

Don’t be afraid to take a moment

 It’s a frenetic world we occupy and that’s instilled an ‘always on’ mindset among so many of us. And if, like me, you go into mental overdrive when going through a fallow period, then Sarah Waddington CBE CDir ChartPR ’s wise advice in her weekend post is worth taking on board. Using her personal experience, she uses a smart analogy of a field that needs resting for a period to start growing again. Her message: Embrace the recovery period. Resting is not quitting. After the week I’ve been through, I found this uplifting.

What do directors and farmers have in common?

Mistakes that cause burnout

 In a week that’s been challenging, another great post that I have found helpful was by Scott Caputo who lists out the 10 mistakes that cause you to burn out. All ten resonate, but my top three are: 1) neglecting physical health; 2) perfectionism; and 3) neglecting personal passions. I’ve seen the impact of other mistakes on those around me, particularly avoiding difficult conversations and ignoring work-life balance. As leaders, we all push ourselves harder and harder and consequently, become blind to the symptoms of burn-out. Scott’s post might just help you spot the signs.

 Read the ten signs here:

Why the role & skills of leaders need to change

 If there is one strategic advisor you should follow for high level people expertise, it is Helen Bevan . She shares her knowledge and curates’ content of others into posts that can be easily understood and (dare I say applied). In this post from last week, Helen highlights a new article in HBR from a group of experts who have identified 6 essential skills to thrive as a leader in this time of profound change in the workplace. I particularly identify with resilient self-awareness and strategic disruption skills. Take a read and see which of the 6 skills resonate with you. 

Head to Helen's post to find out about the 6 essential skills  

The frustrations with hiring

 I’m hearing this more and more: “I can’t find the right people.” And so is Ross Brown who has posted some excellent advice on why this might be. He’s so right when saying there are plenty of great people out there. So why are you not finding them? His list of ‘housekeeping’ factors is sensible, but his deeper take is that maybe it comes down to you not knowing what you are looking for. Go beyond the skills and look at character, personality and interests. And be clear of what your non-negotiables are when heading into recruitment territory. It’s great advice.

Read where Ross thinks agencies are going wrong

The eight culture types found in the workplace

This is a typically helpful post from Advita Patel who highlights research by HBR, that says most organisations fall into one of eight culture types. Advita’s advice to those working in comms agencies is to understand the type of culture you work in so that you are better able to “develop a more personalised, business-driven approach that’s meaningful to your organisation.” Her post is well worth visiting as it includes the HBR chart which illustrates the eight culture types along with quotes from various CEOs.

Those eight culture types are -- read them here:

Tips on managing a remote team

Even with the return to office movement gathering pace, we live in a hybrid working environment where our teams are distributed. Some agencies I know have people all over the country, indeed residing overseas. And many are extremely successful and apparently bucking the trend for those argue for more office time. In this post, agency ops leader Rob Sayles shares some excellent tips he learnt from managing a remote agency way before lock down which are valuable in today’s environment. His summary is that managing a remote team demands clear communication, slick project management (often overlooked in my opinion), a results driven focus, and flexibility.

Check out Rob's tips here:

Why the agency growth cycle must be viewed as marathon not a sprint

I’m presenting on ‘How to build a pipeline’ at the PRmoment Growth Forum in a couple of weeks’ time so have agency growth on my mind at the moment. One aspect I will explore is the question of bringing in external help to secure new biz meetings. And that’s why Steve Fair ’s post resonated. He details a typical agency new biz cycle and provides a way to get out of the short term ‘pain loop’ associated with hiring and firing that external sales help every 3-4 months. The answer is quite simple. You must give it time and you, as an agency leader, have to realise it’s your responsibility to get involved in the process.

Does this agency new biz cycle seem familiar?

If you like what you have read in this newsletter, please do repost it to your network, comment on one or other of the topics that have been covered, and if you don't do so already, follow me for more shared posts on matters relating to agency management and comms in general.

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Many thanks.

Andy