BBDO Guerrero Chief Executive Tony Harris writes about Richard Edelman’s Master Class held on June 16 at the Cannes Lions International Festival of creativity.
I was intrigued with the subject matter of Richard Edelman’s talk not least because this is a mantra I have always tried to follow and it is always good to hear how others cope.
Richard was charming, honest and self-effacing as he took us through the perils of looking after an agency with a strong brand, strong output and a strong founder – sound familiar?
He boiled his advice down to four key action points for a successful operating style.
- You have to work on clients – it shows that you can lead from the front, otherwise you’re just a number cruncher and glad-hander. Furthermore you should build relationships throughout the client structure if possible.
- Give your subordinates plenty of autonomy – avoid micro-management and instead of discussing numbers and details, talk about the bigger picture and particularly the quality of the output.
- Trust and verify – by all means, you should listen and trust the opinion of your reports but always be prepared to hear for yourself. Let people know that you are always prepared to listen.
- Be a public communicator – let people hear your views and therefore evaluate them to gain a sense of the style of business that you will conduct.
He did however, say that if you have a business with a strong founding culture you must always recognize, acknowledge and thank it – a behavior I have never found difficult to follow but one of which it is always good to be reminded. So once more, thank you, David.
