January 2024
Hey, happy new year everyone,
I hope you and your teams all had a fantastic end of year and have confirmed people, process, budgets and agencies for 2024. If not, the beginning of the year provides the perfect natural reset opportunity, offering a clean slate to start again. It’s also a great month to reflect on the successes and challenges of the previous year, gathering insights to inform and ensuring success for the year ahead.
One of my favourite roles is planning, long term and strategically, for businesses and brands, as well as CEOs and partners. I believe a great plan gives everyone – from junior employees through to the managers as well as shareholders and board – the chance to share in the same vision, goals, timescales and language - which can then be carried out and delivered.
Imagine if everyone in your organisation was aware of the mission statement, the three biggest challenges ahead, three key competitors to watch and why, the brand guidelines, the tone of voice, the do’s and don’ts, the key personnel and their responsibilities, the deliverables expected, by whom and by when, plus the achievements made in the previous year. What makes the company such a great place to work? How they can contribute to the wow in the marketing plan? The creative campaigns coming? How to feedback? How to find a mentor? Where to go for coaching within the company? Generating positive employee engagement at every touchpoint.
January also marks the start of the fiscal year for many businesses, which makes it an ideal time for budgeting, financial forecasting, and setting financial targets. Many industries operate on annual cycles, and planning at the start of the year allows businesses to align their strategies with industry trends, cycles, and market conditions. I believe in budget transparency, the ability to converse critically via numbers and the freedom which comes from knowing the budget is planned, has smart objectives attached and of course is realistic. Your FD, MD and marketing department all working from the same spreadsheet! Do you agree?
As technology becomes more sophisticated, many are asking: will AI ever be able to organise your meetings, find and book a venue for your big company offsite, prioritise an inbox, order lunch and gently nudge you to step away from your desk? As someone who founded and ran a top 5 UK digital agency, and did an MBA last year, I predict STRATEGY will win, i.e., longer term progressive thinking that can be plotted and taken into fruition.
Generative AI can help with increasingly sophisticated tasks, such as building an itinerary for a business trip, or conducting preliminary research for meetings. I predict that junior administrative roles, particularly those that deal with repetitive and routine tasks, might be first on the chopping block.
My fave has to be CHATGPT for starting up a conversation or dry copy venture. Try ClickUp AI to consolidate tasks or Wally, which drafts emails. It’s not time to panic – if ever, says Mansoor Soomro, a senior lecturer in sustainability and international business at Teesside University, UK. “AI still struggles with complex tasks where an element of human-level decision making is needed.”
A strategy doesn’t have to be long winded by the way, many top ad agencies rely on headlines and creative campaigns to convey an idea. And some start-ups still believe in the back of a fag packet - which is fine so long as everyone knows what that information includes. I specialise in producing a BLUEPRINT PLAN, a comprehensive document which outlines in words exactly what is going on, what the smart objectives are, from an executive summary to the outcome and all the information in-between. It can also be available as one simple sheet of A4 or a 100-page business plan. What is important is the concise information. The key performance indicators and the smart data. The research. The theories which will be employed. The key personnel. The why. The conciseness and clarity. Then the creativity, the fonts, the colours and the pictures can then be anointed. Content must always come before style and process, when planning. You may be interested to know that GHBrand produces plans which start at £250 for a ‘day of discovery’.
1. PLAN + PEOPLE = RESULTS
It is PEOPLE, who go hand in hand with strategy, technology, and creativity. From the CFO to the marketing manager, think how splendiferous it is when these people work hand in hand, long term, for the same greater good. If employees believe in the company and or brand, feel valued, understand the mission and have decent well-being benefits, why on earth wouldn’t they want to stick around? Hybrid working can only grow now that we have the tools which allow us all to be digital nomads. If company cultures respect their teams, keep communication flowing, listen as well as instruct, ask as well as task, and value deliverables as opposed to office timesheets, it can only make for a far more productive and positive workforce. Explosive ideas can come at any time, in the shower, on the commute, at the gym or in the middle of the night. Eight hours a day - in one room, no matter how many breakout areas, bean bags and biscuits/apples - does NOT have to be spent in an office. Customer facing careers demand in-person processes and a traditional workplace operation, like hospitality, hospitals, couriers, agriculture, actors etc. However, the rest of us can, and should, be allowed to work more freely, to 100% fulfil objectives. Yes, it’s nice to meet and greet, wonderful to brainstorm, super to present in person, meet up with colleagues and share a coffee in a cafe. Deliverables are the most important future objective and structured meetings with agenda and check-ins on progress are the best way forward. Clarity in communication becomes king – what’s your future office plan?
2. TECHNOLOGY + PEOPLE = SUCCESS
My second trend is TECHNOLOGY. Now that we have AI, it is SO important that brands and businesses employ IT strategy to make their documentation stand out, curate differentiation and provide a USP. I directed Microsoft, as a partner, for seven years, employing 30 x IT programmers to co-produce Microsoft Office software and my main memory is having to employ IT directors to check the code for not only errors but absolute arson. One of my techies, who will remain nameless, had been incorporating blasphemy wording into the coding, and it ‘almost’ went unnoticed. IT and technology will remain the fastest growing and most important part of any organisation. My strategic advice is to keep it simple, employ people on watertight contracts, streamline i.e., keep technology to as few brands as possible - and - make it as important as the brand guidelines. Technical Guidelines are just as crucial – do you have them at the ready?
3. VALUE + PEOPLE = BUSINESS
The most forward-thinking organisations think inclusively, celebrate diversity and embrace talent, to future proof their brand and business. A diverse workforce brings varied perspectives and skills, innovation and experience. It is important to note that 51% of the UK is female, the population’s median age is 40, and 51% of population is currently aged 40 and over! Worth also bearing in mind each generation also has its own ethos, special interests and spending prowess. Not only are baby boomers the wealthiest generation, boasting 70% disposable income, but they also spend more than any other generation. Marketers have a very costly blind-spot when it comes to consumers over 50, according to a report from WPP AUNZ and according to Campaign “Over-50s spend most of the money, and they hate your marketing”. Do you have a bespoke plan which appeals to the differing generations, and is your workforce diverse?
MY GOALS FOR 2024…
You made it this far, thank you. I know it’s going to be an amazing time. I thought I’d share some of my own my goals with you too, personal objectives, that I will review monthly and refresh annually.
- Continue to work as an advisor with clients I respect, admire and can add value to.
- Work more as a non-exec. in boardrooms, re business plans and success strategy.
- Sign my fictional book about ‘The Tube’ tv programme with a major publisher.
- Draw daily and post, to enable my creativity to flourish and put art into all projects.
- Move into a mentoring arena, teaching, coaching and driving success to others.
- Keep in touch with my favourite colleagues, as it is others who make the world sing.
- Work more with my children and my amazing friends who enable me every day.
- Listen to more podcasts, more LPs and dance more.
- Enjoy every moment and remember that absolutely everything, is an opportunity.
Special thanks to my favourite colleagues and friends in 2023, in no order of preference whatsoever. To Justin Thomas Copeland for his USA global connectivity and fantastic waistcoats, a trio of amazing photographers for their outstanding creativity – Adam Lawrence, Mi Elfverson and Hannah Sherlock; Sophie Taverner for being the best head chef in Brighton, Andrew Binns for inviting me into AZ boardroom with my DMs on, Jo Godden for her textile savvy and new moon beach adventures, Roger Wade for being a fantastic boss and entrepreneur, Robin Rowland OBE as always for his knowledge and expertise, Katy Richardson for the best design agency, and Emily Woof actor author extraordinaire for being my mentor. Special thanks also to Christos, James, Alex, Scott, Bella, Nell, Laura, Ruby, Jenny, Claire, Nadia, Natalie, Alice, Devon, Sarah, Ceri, Gilly, Emma, Nigel, Julia, Linda, Mat, Hayley, Luke and Jay …you know I couldn’t do it without you.
References: Many thanks this month also go to Vogue Magazine, The Economist, The Times, Harvard Review, Inc.com, Forbes and BBC.