The A-game

Agency Works
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Helping great agencies elevate their performance... that's our thing. People call us ‘agency management experts’ because our industry experience means we know how to put the right systems, processes and reporting in place to help great agencies get where they want it to be. But, as we like to say it how it is… it’s because we help their agency work. Check out the A-game, where Jay Neale, MD and Co-founder, catches up with key players across the commercial, operations and finance space to steal their wisdom, so you can level up.

  1. 10 Jul

    The A-Game: Stop pitching blind

    Pitching is one of the most expensive things an agency does. Days of senior time, creative energy, and late nights – often for briefs you were never really going to win. And yet most agencies still say yes to almost everything, trust gut instinct over proper research, and walk into the room knowing far less about the buyer than they should. They discuss how to qualify properly, understand the people in the room, build a strategy that genuinely answers the brief, and know when to walk away. 🚀 Elevate your A-game with Agency works. Join ⁠⁠⁠live⁠⁠⁠ or watch on ⁠⁠⁠YouTube⁠⁠⁠.

    The A-Game: Stop pitching blind

  2. 12 Mar

    The A-game: Win big, win smart

    Jay speaks to Donna O’Toole, founder of August Recognition, a leading global Awards Agency, and AwardsApp, a revolutionary AI SaaS platform she has cofounded with Daniel Priestley. The awards industry is broken: fake competitions dilute trust, pay-to-play schemes waste budgets, and genuine achievements get lost in the noise. Here's the thing: awards fuel agency growth when they're done right. What sets you apart isn't just winning shiny trophies, but winning strategically, and without draining your resources. Recognised as a Top 25 CX Influencer and bestselling author of WIN!, Donna's transforming the broken awards industry from the inside - as both an international judge and someone who's helped countless agencies become category leaders. They discuss how to identify awards worth winning, why a relentless focus on impact is your secret awards weapon, and the systematic approach that turns awards from expensive gambles into predictable growth drivers. 🚀 Elevate your A-game with Agency works. Join ⁠⁠live⁠⁠ or watch on ⁠⁠YouTube⁠⁠.

    The A-game: Win big, win smart

  3. 5 Feb

    The A-game: Lead change, don't chase it

    Change isn't slowing down. It's accelerating. AI is reshaping everything, Gen Z is rewriting workplace rules, and clients expect agencies to move at startup speed. If you know how to lead it, change is your competitive advantage. The question isn't how to avoid disruption, but how to thrive on it. To create energy around change instead of exhaustion. To lean into the hard stuff rather than resist it. And build a culture that's genuinely change-ready. Jay speaks to Gemma Popejoy, Co-Founder of Pivot Forward and transformation expert. With a track record of delivering complex change in organisations big and small, Gemma helps leaders close the gap between ambition and execution, turning change from their biggest threat into their biggest differentiator. They discuss how to bring energy and alignment when tackling the hard stuff, and the practical things that build the change mindset and muscle across your entire team. "We can provide belief. We can help people trust and we can provide the platform to do great work. But what we can't do is protect our people. Instead, we as leaders create movement. We have to create the conditions for our people to move through discomfort." 🚀 Elevate your A-game with Agency works. Join ⁠live⁠ or watch on ⁠YouTube⁠.

    The A-game: Lead change, don't chase it

  4. 08/12/2025

    The A-game: Human-led, AI powered

    AI is already reshaping the way agencies work. It boosts efficiency in research, production, and reporting - freeing teams for higher-value thinking and the kind of creativity machines can't replace. Jay speaks to Jen Wright, Founder of Rascal. With 25 years’ experience delivering digital transformation for global brands, Jen now helps leaders and businesses transform the impact they can have by harnessing tech in a way that works for them. But it also raises the stakes: clients begin to expect “faster, cheaper,” commoditisation looms, and tough questions emerge around policy, IP, and security. The reality is, AI is now part of the agency stack. The question isn’t if you’ll use it, but how. What client problems will AI actually solve? Where must humans lead? And what skills and training will equip your team? What sets you apart isn’t just adopting AI, but applying it with purpose. They discuss where AI creates true strategic advantage for agencies, why human creativity, judgement, and relationships remain irreplaceable and how to evolve skills and culture to stay ahead. "The question in your mind is not how do I use AI. The question should be how can I lift my team to do their best possible job. Which data would help them to be more creative?" 🚀 Elevate your A-game with Agency works. Join live or watch on YouTube.

    The A-game: Human-led, AI powered

  5. 03/11/2025

    The A-game: Turn vision into impact

    Every agency starts with a vision. The kind of business you want to build, the culture you want to create, the work you want to deliver, the profit you want to make. Jay speaks to Nikki Gatenby - Agency Specialist Non-Exec Director, cognitive behavioural coach, and best-selling author. Having led two marketing agencies to global success, Nikki now works with founders and leadership teams to turn bold visions into thriving, highly valuable agencies. But vision on its own doesn’t create value. To build an agency that's really future-fit, you need to put your people and purpose first. Balancing making money with creating impact, and being a force for good. And that's hard to fall out of love with. They discuss how to keep your vision alive when the day-to-day gets in the way, shape strategies that build measurable value, and align people and purpose. "We've got to get comfortable that it's okay to make money and be clear with people what that money is doing because it's fuelling our business. It's not just there to make the founder rich, it's there to fuel the business." 🚀 Elevate your A-game with Agency works. Join ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠live⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ or watch on ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠YouTube⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠.

    The A-game: Turn vision into impact

  6. 03/10/2025

    The A-game: From revenue to real value

    Every agency owner thinks about growth. Some dream of scaling, others of a future sale, and many of securing investment to take their business to the next level. Jay speaks to Tony Walford, founding partner of Green Square and one of the leading M&A and corporate advisory voices in the marketing communications, media and tech sectors. Tony advises agencies on what makes them attractive to acquirers, how to navigate the planning process, and where the market is heading next. But here’s the challenge: what creates value in an agency isn’t always what owners think. A big client win, a glossy award, or rapid revenue growth might feel like success - but to acquirers and investors, they’re only part of the story. The truth is, financial value comes down to a handful of critical drivers. Miss them, and your agency may struggle to attract the right buyer or partner. Nail them, and you’ll open the door to investment, acquisition, or a successful exit. They discuss the key drivers of financial value every agency needs to get right, what acquirers are really looking for and recent trends arounds growth. "Understand where your growth strategy is because that's one of the things you're going to be asked for. And if you don't know, then why is someone going to buy you if you haven't got your growth?" 🚀 Elevate your A-game with Agency works. Join ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠live⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ or watch on⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠YouTube⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠.

    The A-game: From revenue to real value

  7. 08/09/2025

    The A-game: Client-first starts on the inside

    Every agency says they’re client-first. It’s on the creds deck, the website, the brand DNA. Jay speaks to Beatrice Andrew, Behavioural Science Consultant and Founder of Be.a Consulting, an expert in human behaviour and change. She coaches leaders and teams to unlock growth through customer centricity, mindset shifts and unconscious decision-making. But when deadlines hit, scopes change, or capacity’s tight - what really drives your decisions? The truth is, most teams are still operating with a production mindset. Not a problem-solving one. And that disconnect? It’s costing you growth. To truly become client-first, agencies need to change how they think, not just what they deliver. That's where behavioural insight comes in. They discuss what it takes to become genuinely client-first – how to really understand what your clients want, shift your decision-making mindset, and build habits that deepen trust, not just tick boxes. 🚀 Elevate your A-game with Agency works. Join ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠live⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ or watch on⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠YouTube⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠.

    The A-game: Client-first starts on the inside

  8. 30/07/2025

    The A-game: Build a sales engine that wins

    Agencies are hurting right now. Those that once thrived on inbound leads are now facing silence. The pipeline isn’t filling itself - and new clients aren’t knocking. Jay speak to Ryan Hall, Founder of Friday Solved, a consulting company that helps businesses solve their sales problems with sustainable and scalable solutions. But, here's the thing: clients ARE actually spending more this year. The budgets are there. You need to take control of your sales strategy and do the hard graft to get it. There's no silver bullet. And you can't just outsource (or mentally outsource to a salesperson) and expect it to work. Leaders need to step up and take control. Build a proper sales engine – strategy, process, tech, people, culture. The whole thing. They dive into why waiting around isn't working anymore, what it really takes to build a sales engine that works, and how agency leaders can stop hoping and start hunting. 🚀 Elevate your A-game with Agency works. Join ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠live⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ or watch on⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠YouTube⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠.

    The A-game: Build a sales engine that wins
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About

Helping great agencies elevate their performance... that's our thing. People call us ‘agency management experts’ because our industry experience means we know how to put the right systems, processes and reporting in place to help great agencies get where they want it to be. But, as we like to say it how it is… it’s because we help their agency work. Check out the A-game, where Jay Neale, MD and Co-founder, catches up with key players across the commercial, operations and finance space to steal their wisdom, so you can level up.

Information

  • Creator
    Agency Works
  • Years Active
    2024 - 2026
  • Episodes
    31
  • Rating
    Clean
  • Copyright
    © Agency Works
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    The A-game