Agencies as operating systems and agents: execs on the industry’s next evolution

Agency bosses will all, of course, hope that it’s their way of doing things that emerges phoenix-like from the ashes of this period of flux. But what will agencies look like in five years’ time when we’re on to the next batch of capital ‘T’ trends? We asked agency leaders for their predictions.

Alex Dahan, chief executive officer, Open Influence: “Agencies must become self-evolving operating systems. It’s not about being cool, it’s about being composable: aware, adaptable and engineered to evolve in real-time. The most future-forward agencies aren’t waiting for quarterly reviews to fix inefficiencies; they’re embedding lightweight AI tools across workflows to eliminate bottlenecks, scale personalization and unlock new service lines, often overnight. From pitch decks built in minutes to predictive creative testing and autonomous campaign reporting, these agencies operate with the reflexes of a tech company and the creativity of a cultural tastemaker. They don’t just use AI, they train it on their unique processes and IP, turning knowledge into reusable systems. The results are a lean, agile org that can expand offerings without expanding overhead. The agency of the future doesn’t grow by adding headcount, it grows by upgrading its core code.”

James Needham, co-founder, Untangld: “The agency of the future is built for breakthrough moments, not business-as-usual. The traditional agency model is dying because it’s optimized for volume, not value. Clients don’t need another deck or campaign gathering dust on their server. They need the strategic clarity to make high-stakes decisions that fundamentally change their trajectory. The future belongs to agencies that understand this shift: agencies that focus on building an arsenal of precision tools to cut through complexity and deliver breakthrough insights when it matters most. It’s about being surgically focused on the moments that define businesses: market entry, repositioning, crisis response, growth inflection points. The kind of strategic work that keeps CEOs awake at night (not brand managers). The old model sold time and creativity. The new model sells certainty in uncertainty. It’s commercially ruthless, evidence-obsessed and willing to tell clients what they need (not want) to hear. Every tool, every methodology, every engagement is designed around one question: ‘What decision needs to be made and how do we give you the confidence to make it?’ It’s an extension of the client’s C-suite, thinking with them at the speed and stakes their business actually operates at.”

Ben Alalouff, chief strategy officer, Live & Breathe: “The agency of the future is a product-centric experience studio: a creative powerhouse in the front, a development team in the back. Built for lean, agile tech development, but always in service of sensational experiences that move people and product. The studio spots the commerce opportunity, shapes the technology experience and applies a creative wrapper for impact at every touchpoint. Less words, more working prototypes. Less five-month creative journeys, more two-week sprints. Less contribution to noise, more engineering ways through it.”

Christine Schrader, vice-president, strategic innovation, Wpromote: “Change is the one constant in media (well, and budget conversations). Customer preferences change, platforms change, technology changes. That’s why strategic evolution needs to be baked into what you do. Don’t hide from industry-shaking developments like AI, but also don’t pursue AI for its own sake. We call our approach ‘hybrid intelligence’ (HI). It means evolving or even re-inventing our processes, services and commercial model to deliver the human insights, creativity and ingenuity our clients value the most, systematically supported, augmented and accelerated by AI and technology. Agencies beholden to the way things have always been done won’t be able to meet this moment; agencies that lose sight of the human connection that drives effective advertising will ultimately fail to deliver. HI isn’t just the future of our agency; it’s the future of marketing.”

Carryn Quibell, CEO, Dept Americas: “The future of agencies isn’t a model, it is a mindset. Agency truths and agency models are different things. Truths are simple and enduring: diverse perspectives, capabilities and experiences (human or otherwise) drive better work, and great talent and sharp thinking always rise. The models, on the other hand, are ever-evolving. Traditional structures like time-based fees, silos, and rigid scopes no longer match the speed, complexity or ambition brands need now. The answer isn’t perfecting your model; it’s creating a fast, flexible culture with great talent. By building capabilities, fostering the right culture and maintaining adaptability to stay ahead, you set yourself up for long-term success. Augment your human talent. Act like a startup. Remove friction. Adopt a product mindset. Think in systems. Lead with humanity. The future belongs to agencies that build for change and move at the pace of culture, clients and transformation.”

Django Weisz Blanchetta, CEO, SuperHeroes: “The agency of the future needs to balance AI while doubling down on creativity. In the last year, we’ve evolved our offer, adapting to the speed of culture with nimble production cycles, hybrid talent models and investment at the intersection of tech and creativity. To stay ahead of the AI curve, we’ve launched new units that push beyond the expected, like with Jimmy, our digital art collective of 12 AI-native creators with huge followings, collaborating on work that blurs art, tech and storytelling. We’re also diving deeper into creator and visual storytelling to meet the growing demands of the market. In a world drowning in irrelevant content, emotion and cultural relevance are the sharpest tools we’ve got. AI should not be used to replace talent, but to unlock bolder ideas, faster. The future is already here.”

Rachelle Hansen, executive vice-president, client leadership, Croud: “Return on media is too general today. Clients are really looking for return on intelligence. The agency of the future is one that has AI-powered tools, different proprietary technologies and smarter, more adaptive ways of working, but what does all that deliver for the client? The full-service agency model doesn’t cut it any more. Clients don’t need everything. They need an agile partner that can move with clarity and speed. Intelligence isn’t just data or AI; it’s the ability to connect creative, media and commerce in a way that moves the business forward. That’s what clients value now. That’s where we’re focused.”

Sam Fenton-Elstone, CEO, Anything is Possible: “The agency of tomorrow has only a superficial resemblance to the agency of yesterday. Meta’s new AI ad solutions are just the first to disintermediate a broad swathe of traditional agency services. So let’s stop thinking about services and start thinking about outcomes. Agile, independent agencies will always be able to develop strategic perspectives that deliver meaningful value. Great agencies are brought in to balance that independence with integration, understanding a brand from inside and out simultaneously. This consultancy-first agency needs to be hyper-productive at generating business advantage, spotting growth opportunities before the client does and quickly moving insight into action. This means rising to the AI challenge. AI is available to everyone, so agencies need to get smart with it: building their own indispensable platforms, owning new drivers of value, incubating change and innovation on demand.”

Niki Chana, programmatic strategy director, SBS: “The agency of the future is independent but not alone. Indie agencies are redefining what it means to scale. Going it alone no longer works in a world where complexity, speed and specialism rule. Instead, we’re seeing the rise of independent agency networks built on collaboration, not consolidation, providing a new blueprint for modern growth. A study we recently ran found that 90% of independents are already forming strategic partnerships. The benefits include new business opportunities, expanded capabilities, better pitch positioning and the ability to rival holding companies – without sacrificing agility, human capital or the human connections that make agencies unique. The best agencies of the future won’t be the biggest, they’ll be the smartest, fastest and most connected. It’s not the size of the agency that counts; it’s about the size of the network an agency holds.”

Luke Bristow, CEO, MNC: “The best agencies will always be human-first. Everyone’s racing to be seen as the most AI-enabled agency with the fanciest productized solutions. But agencies can’t out-tech big tech. Where we’ve always added value is by helping brands make better commercial decisions, with more confidence. In a fragmented media landscape, brands need strategic and experienced people who can cut through the noise, stay agnostic and help them make confident calls on media investments. That’s why our team now leans more client-side in its makeup and our commercial agreements are linked to client performance, making us true strategic partners for the long term. Rather than easily manipulated metrics that favor short-term thinking, we’re all incentivized by the same thing: clients’ commercial performance. We’re not anti-AI; we embrace it in so many areas of our business. But we are very pro doing the all-important strategic thinking that matters in this unique landscape.”

Julia Arenson, director, In-house Agency Review: “The agency of the future needs to stop acting like an agency. Brands don’t just want campaigns any more; they want capability. Marketing now moves too fast for endless decks, siloed teams and billing models that reward inefficiency. The future belongs to people who embed, co‑create and share the stakes with their clients – who measure success by the same KPIs that keep CMOs awake at night. It’s a shift from sales to influence and from service to partnership – agencies that cling to the vendor mindset will be left behind. The ones willing to tear up the old playbook and build alongside brands will win.”

Jonathan Emmins, founder, Amplify: “The agency of the future needs to think like creators and producers, not just marketers. The most effective agencies today don’t just communicate; they captivate. They move beyond selling to entertaining, crafting cultural moments that people actively seek out and share. When agencies help brands contribute to culture and worldbuilding, they’re better placed to earn real attention. This blurs the line between marketing, entertainment and culture and agencies must evolve their structures to reflect that. By creating campaigns through cultural lenses, we can build content that connects on a deeper level. There’s a groundswell of agencies that recognize this seismic shift. Our partners at Common Interest, for example, are building a collective that believes in culture’s power to transform business and brand. But while some agencies are embracing this new reality, legacy agencies may struggle to keep pace.”

Patrick Ryan, founder, The 300 Consultancy: “More agencies need to stop treating new business and retention as separate problems and realize that pitching and the outcomes of those pitches are the solution to both. A pitch represents the sharpest articulation of what an agency can do. That thinking should then cascade into every current client relationship. The agencies thriving are using the pressure and creativity of competitive pitching as an innovation engine for everything they deliver. Every pitch becomes a stress test: ‘Are we giving our existing clients this caliber of innovation and strategic thinking?’ This creates a virtuous cycle where pitch-winning ideas flow directly into client work, while client insights sharpen competitive edge. To build a true culture of growth, apply a holistic combination of the now and the next.”

Joe Maglio, CEO, Cheil Agency Network: “The agency of the future is an operating system: an always-on, AI-powered platform that fuses data, creativity and technology to engineer brand relevance in real time. At its center is a living core of machine learning and predictive analytics, constantly ingesting cultural signals, behavioral data and market noise to shape strategies and outputs at the speed of change. Importantly, agency talent becomes the intelligence layer of the operating system. Creative ideas are co-developed by humans and machines – employees guide generative tools, test hypotheses in simulation and refine assets for maximum impact. Strategists act as architects, interpreting real-time data flows and translating them into insights that evolve daily. Media and production teams act as system integrators, automating deployment yet constantly calibrating for performance and nuance. This platform is self-learning, but it’s people who teach it. Every campaign is a feedback loop that is engineered by agency talent, captured by systems and used to level up both. Employees are empowered to be more inventive, more strategic, more culturally attuned and more focused on driving true business outcomes.”

Mark Singer, US CMO, Deloitte Digital: “The agency of the future isn’t just an ‘agent.’ It’s constantly evolving and built to thrive on what’s next rather than relying on tradition. This relationship goes beyond advising; it’s about operating side by side with clients. Success will be defined by what you value and invest in – talent, technology and data. Structures and operating models must adapt as clients demand integrated solutions and seamless collaboration across marketing, creative and analytics. Technology must be embedded at the core, not treated as an afterthought. It’s about forging dynamic alliances across the ecosystem, leveraging the best talent, tools and platforms to deliver value at every touchpoint. The agency of the future invests boldly, chooses talent strategically and constantly reimagines how it works. Only those who are willing to adapt will shine.”

James Connelly, CEO, Charlie Oscar: “The agency of the future will not be performative, but it will make brands perform. A full-funnel approach with marketing science, AI and creator execution will be embedded throughout. Worthless vanity metrics and outdated, ineffective ‘influencing customers by renting audiences through buying media’ playbooks will be kicked to the curb. It won’t rely on the 30-second TV spot for attention. Instead, it will move at pace to make that vital first three seconds work. AI will be implemented to make advertising better, but the focus will be on the human. Strategists, analysts and creatives will use data and insights to generate high-impact, culturally relevant content that tells a story, amplifies brand reach and improves media efficiency across paid and organic channels. Work will be optimized through a performance measurement framework to ensure scalable, long-term impact by truly driving business growth. Brands and advertisers will be banging down the door and talent will be created, nurtured and retained.”

Eduardo Simon, CEO, Galeria: “The agency of the future is in continuous evolution. It is built through both major (the popularization of AI) and minor (each new trend launched by people on social media can lead to major transformations for a brand) revolutions and innovations that impact the advertising business and relationships between brands and people. AI is a valuable resource in service of human creativity. As AI takes over day-to-day tasks and contributes to the hyper-personalization of campaigns at scale, professionals will have more time to create and strategically think of innovative ways to drive brand growth. The agencies that will stand out are those with teams composed of professionals with rich cultural backgrounds, diverse stories, origins and life experiences. The agency of the future is predictive. It invests in research, data intelligence and closely monitors consumer behavior to predict the impact and results of a campaign even before it airs. The agency of the future is a combination of data, technology, creativity and human talent.”