In today's fast-paced digital landscape, the need for effective and efficient marketing technology (MarTech) software has become more crucial than ever before. In this webinar, hosted by Decideware in partnership with the Association of National Advertisers (ANA), dove into the importance of high-quality MarTech software implementation, with a special focus on the foundational principles of cooperation and communication between client and MarTech provider. Understanding the impact of such collaboration on customer organizations can be transformative for marketing & organizational success.
Led by Decideware’s Kimberly Pardo & Richard Benyon, the webinar took a unique look at the implementation process from both the supplier and client point of views, providing a sneak-peek under the hood of tier-1 software implementations. Exploring points ranging from the selection of the right software/supplier for your organization to the continued support of your new system, they provided a comprehensive look into what makes great client/supplier relationships tick before, during, and after and implementation.
It seems like only yesterday we began preparing for the 2022 ANA Advertising Financial Management conference; and sadly it’s already here and gone. And what a wonderful conference it was!
Sponsoring the ANA AFM conference for over a decade has allowed us to witness and be a part of the fast growth and maturation of marketing procurement, globally. From humble beginnings in 2009 where we attended with around 150 others, to over 750 in recent years has shown just how powerful, connected, and supportive this community of professionals really is. Juxtaposed to the growth of AFM, here at Decideware we have been blessed with similar growth over the same period – evidence that we are better together as the agency relationship management space continues to grow.
With over 20 insightful presentations from thought leaders around the world of marketing & marketing procurement, not only was the 2022 ANA AFM conference a great networking opportunity, but also a can’t-miss educational opportunity as well. Careful curation of the schedule and presenters came to a point with talks led by Decideware clients Kellogg, PepsiCo, Nestlé, Clorox, and our very own Ed McFadden, Chief Client Officer at Decideware. With topics ranging from agency relationship management to hot legal topics in advertising, everyone in attendance walked away just a little bit more knowledgeable of the landscape we all operate within.
If one thing was clear from ANA AFM 2022, its this: The landscape we operate in isn’t as concrete as we may have thought. We have the power to reshape our surroundings through high quality work, high quality relationships, and a high level of respect for our fellow people. Marketing B2B and B2C is old news – the future is B4H; Brands for Humans. To deliver on such an initiative, our house must be in order with purposeful agency rosters, mindful compensation frameworks, and robust data analytics to fuel the successes of tomorrow.
To learn more about how Decideware can help bring clarity to your agency relationships, visit www.decideware.com, or reach out to info@decideware.com today.
To learn more about the ANA organization and their Member Growth Agenda, visit ANA.net.
Decideware Excited to Announce Continued Partnership with ANA in 2022
Decideware is happy to share that we are continuing our partnership with the Association of National Advertisers (ANA) in 2022. Specifically, we are looking forward to sponsoring the ANA Advertising Financial Management Conference May 1st – May 4th in Orlando, FL where advertisers & advertising agencies from around the globe gather to share ideas, learn from one another, and network across industries.
Decideware are proud sponsors of Women of Influence in partnership with Producers and Procurers IQ.
We are pleased to announce that Decideware are proud sponsors of Women of Influence in partnership with Producers and Procurers IQ.
I am pleased to announce that Decideware is once again proud to sponsor ProcureCon Marketing, to be held in La Jolla, CA. 5-8 December 2021.
Learn how to apply Business Intelligence to Marketing Procurement and Agency management in our new E-book. If you are an executive who works at a large advertiser, who has responsibility for managing relationships with marketing & communication agencies, and are looking for new ways to optimize those relationships, then this eBook is for you.
The following is an extract from an article published May 25, 2020 in Forward magazine by the Association of National Advertisers. ANA Members can access the full article, here:
https://www.ana.net/magazines/show/id/forward-2020-05-decideware-organize-teams-for-scoping-success
There's no rest for the weary. With the 2020 scope season in the rearview mirror, it's already time to look ahead to 2021.
The Decideware Advertising Management Scholarship at MSU.
Decideware is pleased to announce a new scholarship fund has been established with the Department of Advertising and Public Relationships in the College of Communication Arts and Sciences, Michigan State University (MSU), ie the Decideware Advertising Management Scholarship.
And we are now delighted to recognise Brandon Crawford and Isabel Perhogan as the deserved recipients of the (inaugural) 2020 awards.
On 10 April, the Association of National Advertisers published a new article;
"Is AI the End of Agencies As You Know Them?"
which features comments by Decideware, Inc. CEO Richard Benyon.
Agencies are valued partners in advertisers’ evaluation programs. They act as respondents in the relationship surveys our clients conduct, often they’re invited to play a role in shaping the program, and certainly they will engage to act on the findings.
Most agency management programs help companies manage their agency relationships, deliver process efficiencies and savings. But did you know there is more untapped value that Marketing isn’t getting that can help brand teams make more informed decisions and deliver insights to the leadership team to help drive Marketing strategy? During this webinar, Decideware and LinkRFx will share with you how to move up the value pyramid to deliver more strategic value.
In this webinar, you will learn:
With rapid growth over the past 18 months, we've acquired many new clients coming to Decideware with greater ambitions for scale, productivity and ROI than we might have seen in the past. And established clients are lifting to greater heights faster than ever.
Decideware is again a proud sponsor of the ANA's Advertising Financial Management Conference, this year April 28 – May 1, in Phoenix, ARIZ.
In fact, as we’ve done for years now, Steven Wales will welcome all the attendees to the event Monday morning right ahead of Bob’s Opening Remarks.
Late last year the WFA and Decideware partnered to deliver a seminar to WFA Sourcing Forum members in Singapore.
Decideware would like to acknowledge all the nominees and congratulate Raja Rajamannar Chief Marketing and Communications Officer at Mastercard on being named WFA Global Marketer of the Year, 2018.
The WFA recently announced that the Jury for the WFA Global Marketer of the Year selected the shortlist for this year’s award, featuring heads of marketing from Coty, Diageo, Ikea, Mastercard, Procter & Gamble and Unilever.
Below are the October articles of interest from key trade publications, with excerpts highlighting key take-aways.
Decideware is pleased to announce an extension to our Strategic Partner relationship with the World Federation of Advertisers. Decideware first partnered with the WFA in 2013, sponsoring events and participating in the WFA's Strategic Partners program and we are pleased to extend the relationship into its 6th year in 2018.
Below are the February articles of interest from key trade publications, with excerpts highlighting key take-aways. This month's selection includes articles on ROI in 2018, agency productivity, as well as GDPR. We hope that you find this month's selections informative and valuable.
Decideware recently published a Q&A article, "Stacy Jensen on Scopes of Work, Agency Performance, Breaking Down Silos and More" in the Industry Insights section of the ANA's Marketing Knowledge Center.
Decideware recently published an article, "Three Key Benefits of a Formal Onboarding Program" in the Industry Insights section of the ANA's Marketing Knowledge Center.
Below are the November articles of interest from key trade publications, with excerpts highlighting key take-aways. This month's selection includes articles on "chief growth officer" roles, TV dominating ad spend, as well as how much ad agencies ideas are worth. We hope that you find this month's selections informative and valuable.
The ProcureCon Marketing conference will take place from November 28-30, 2017 at the New Orleans Marriott.
Below are the October articles of interest from key trade publications, with excerpts highlighting key take-aways. This month's selection includes articles on the types of agency-client relationships, turning an in-house agency best-in-class, as well as McDonald's global media agency review. We hope that you find this month's selections informative and valuable.
Below are the September articles of interest from key trade publications, with excerpts highlighting key take-aways. This month's selection includes articles on the secret to great creative, what's behind the trouble on Madison Avenue, as well as tips for improving agency compensation practices and transparency. We hope that you find this month's selections informative and valuable.
Below are the August articles of interest from key trade publications, with excerpts highlighting key take-aways. This month's selection includes articles on improvements in media transparency issues, how marketers would reinvest one month's worth of ad spend, as well as how digital consultancies are making inroads. We hope that you find this month's selections informative and valuable.
Below are the July articles of interest from key trade publications, with excerpts highlighting key take-aways. This month's selection includes articles on the failing share prices of WPP, the state of advertising labor rates, as well as where we stand today- one year after the ANA's report on media transparency. We hope that you find this month's selections informative and valuable.
Introducing Decideware University - Agency Management eLearning. Providing clients with 24/7 access to expert agency management tutorials and Agency Onboarding programs to educate and activate your agency stakeholders.
Most decisions made in the agency management arena are time-critical and must be accurate. This places an emphasis on having processes and systems in place that collect information efficiently, often across multiple geographies, business units and with different agency types.
Below are the June articles of interest from key trade publications, with excerpts highlighting key take-aways. This month's selection includes articles on the consultative nature of agencies, Unilever's 'less is more' approach to Marketing, as well as the lessons Marketers can learn from the departure of Coca-Cola's CMO. We hope that you find this month's selections informative and valuable.
Below are the May articles of interest from key trade publications. This month's selection includes articles on agencies, hybrid CMO roles, as well as the changes in agency pay. We hope that you find this month's selections informative and valuable.
It is well-known that a strong relationship between a client and an agency can bring about great work, often resulting in more business and better brand success. The ANA has released an interesting slideshow proposing techniques for clients to build a stronger relationship with their agencies.
The speaker line up was great, the content was powerful, the networking was effective and the Samsung Virtual Reality Booth was . . . well, . . . it was just cool!
Decideware is a proud sponsor of the upcoming annual ANA Financial Management Conference, to be held in San Diego from May 23 - 26th at the Manchester Grand Hyatt hotel.
Below are the April articles of interest from key trade publications. This month's selection includes articles on benchmarking, briefing, as well as digital marketing fundamentals. We hope that you find this month's selections informative and valuable.
On Tuesday, April 25th, the World Federation of Advertisers heads to Toronto for Global Marketer Week - days of inspiration, discovery and learning. Steven Wales, CRO of Decideware, will attend the meeting representing WFA's Strategic Partner for Efficiency.
Below are the March articles of interest from key trade publications. This month's selection includes articles on how to build a better agency relationship, the importance of a client/agency contract, as well as the increasing trend in global consultancies buying up agencies and reshaping the brand marketing world. We hope that you find this month's selections informative and valuable.
Decideware has enjoyed a long and productive relationship with the ANA.
McKinsey & Company released an article in February discussing the current client-agency environment and provided guidance on how to get the most from your agency relationships.
Below is the February articles of interest from key trade publications. This month's selection includes articles on the challenges that marketers have faced over the past year, how to get the most from your agencies in the upcoming year, as well as the increasing trend in client project-based assignments. We hope that you find this month's selection informative and valuable.
Each month, Decideware will highlight articles of interest from key trade publications such as AdAge, ANA's Smartbrief, Campaign Live to give Marketing and Procurement professional the latest news and relevant industry information. If you are involved in managing client-agency relationships, we hope that you find this information valuable and informative:
In November 2016, one of Decideware’s clients in NYC kindly hosted an opportunity for agency executives to meet with Decideware and provide feedback on their usage of Decideware’s Agency Management Solutions.
Decideware will present at the joint ANA Advertising Financial Management Committee and the WFA Sourcing Forum meetings held on December 6-7th in New York.
ProcureCon Marketing, held in Los Angeles from November 14-16, 2016, provided attendees with significant opportunities to understand how their colleagues have designed and implemented best-in-class agency Scope of Work programs.
Decideware is once again a proud sponsor of ProcureCon Marketing, which will be held at the Los Angeles Loews Hollywood Hotel, from November 14-16th, 2016.
The ANA Masters of Measurement conference will be held from September 14-16th in Naples, FL at the Ritz Carlton. This conference focuses on measurement and how measurement can help marketers make better decision and ultimately improve efficiencies and ROI.
Decideware is currently attending the WFA Global Marketer conference in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia from March 15-18th.
Decideware is pleased to announce our continued relationship with the Association of National Advertisers. Decideware first began sponsoring ANA events in 2010 and became part of ANA's Thought Leadership program in 2011.
I’m often asked what lessons Decideware has learned about the agency evaluation process. While each client has their own unique methodology and approach to agency relationship reviews, we see a lot of common issues, and have developed a series of credos that serve well as best practices. Though, I’m unable to share all of those with you in this space (I’ll review all of them during my upcoming workshop), these five tips provide a starting point for revamping your agency evaluation processes:
Mark your calendars: Steven Wales, Chief Revenue Officer of Decideware, will lead a daylong workshop for the Association of National Advertisers on March 8. The workshop will center on Agency Lifecycle management. Read on to learn more about the program and what we'll cover throughout the day.
As the marketing space becomes more complex, advertisers find themselves managing an increasingly diverse roster of agencies and vendors. While maintaining relationships with these partners has always been challenging, it's more difficult now than ever. The better your relationships with agencies, the better their work will be.
This year's Procurecon Marketing conference was held in Nashville, with just under 200 agency management and marketing procurement practitioners in attendance. The size of the conference was perfect for networking, and we had the pleasure of hosting our first Agency Management Leaders dinner, with 20 marketing procurement directors and senior managers getting together to trade ideas and make new connections. Much of the value of these industry conferences occurs outside the official sessions, so it was a pleasure to help facilitate some of these discussions in a less formal environment!
I was recently researching the "people-centric" aspects of Agency Relationship Management, especially focusing in on how and why to collect feedback. I found a great definition for success.
The ANA and WFA will hold its ANA AFM Committee and WFA Sourcing forum next week from December 8-9th in New York, NY.
"It's become a recent tradition for the ANA and WFA to hold yearly, back-to-back meetings of the ANA Advertising Financial Management Committee and WFA Sourcing Forum in New York."
ProcureCon for Digital & Marketing Services will hold its annual meeting next week from November 16-18th in Nashville, TN.
"ProcureCon for Digital and Marketing Services is North America's only event specifically dedicated to issues pertinent to marketing procurement. This meeting has content geared toward all maturity and experience levels and contains a host of industry leading speakers to tackle important marketing procurement topics."
The ANA will hold its Masters of Marketing Meeting from October 14-17th at the Orlando World Center Marriott in Orlando, FL. Steven Wales, Chief Revenue Officer for Decideware, will attend the meeting.
Procurement, as a relatively new function, is still in the process of maturing, and the marketing category can be one of the most challenging to manage. The key differentiator from other indirect categories is that there is no singular or clear specification of what we should buy (with the closest spec we may receive being an agency brief). If we buy a service (or appoint an agency), we can only realize how it performed much later, after the campaign has been launched.
One area in which we are seeing a rising level of interest is Capability Management, where large advertisers are seeking to capture the intellectual property of what specifically their agencies can do for them (i.e. the services they provide and areas they specialize in).
In the past this information has generally resided in each marketers' head, but with the involvement of procurement and the desire to optimize the portfolio of agencies, organizations are now looking to formally capture and utilize this data.
I am currently reading a terrific book by Harvard Business School Press called "Managing Performance to Maximize Results". It is a compilation of articles, all based around Human Resources Performance Management.
What drew me to read it was to investigate parallels between HR Performance Management and Strategic Supplier Relationship Management.
A great deal of theoretical research and practical study has gone into the manager/employee performance management process and I believe we can leverage this body of work to apply to the domain of supplier relationship management.
I was recently researching the "people-centric" aspects of Supplier Relationship Management, especially focusing in on how and why to collect feedback. I found a great definition for success ...
"Creates and/or reinforces focused, sustained behavior change and/or skill development in a sufficient number of individuals so as to result in increased organizational effectiveness."
Here are some tips that were elicited from research performed by the Multisource Feedback Forum. Carol Timmreck and David Braken created 11 guidelines for initiating and sustaining 360 feedback in performance reviews.
Using Agency Management to Make Interactions With Creative Shops Smoother, More Productive
This interesting article recently published by Advertising Age discusses two presentations made at the 2015 ANA Financial Management Conference by Diageo's Marc Strachan and American Express Co.'s Eve Reiter to improve the overall relationship with between creative agency procurement and management.
Image above was provided with thanks to the AdAge Article
In what must be one of the most unusual CMO presentations I've had the pleasure of listening to, Matthew Jauchius, EVP & CMO, Nationwide Insurance, provided insights as to how he has used marketing efficiency to drive the effectiveness of their advertising budget.
"Optimizing Agency Teams: A Decade of Change" by Richard Benyon explores the new models for managing multiple agencies to ensure that there is one voice for the client across all consumer touchpoints. The article also touches on the key processes that can assist in the implementation of these new agency models.
"How to Build an Effective Briefing Program" also by Richard Benyon explores the argument that the better the brief, the better the work that will come out of your agency. The article touches on the three key elements for creating a successful briefing program as well as key traits that comprise a quality program.
This article introduces a tool we use to map agency performance - the Relationship Matrix.
The Relationship Matrix helps clients visualize the two key dimensions that all agencies must deliver on - Product and Process.
This is a powerful tool to deliver deep insights into performance, quickly. As such, it's a terrific "C" level report.
ANA Business Intelligence Webinar Details
Learn how leading companies are using data visualization techniques to uncover new insights and make more effective decisions in managing their marketing spend. This webinar, presented by Richard Benyon, CEO – Decideware, Daniel O'Brien, Global Business Analyst – Pfizer, and Diane Gibbons, Global Procurement – Pfizer, will look at how to apply business intelligence tools to analyze agency budgets and performance using the wealth of available marketing procurement data. Understand how well-constructed dashboards can assist you to better explore this data, distribute critical knowledge within your organization, and optimize all areas of agency management (including agency selection, scope of work, performance evaluation and production budgeting).
Adweek not long ago highlighted the 50 year relationship between Publicis Groupe’s Leo Burnett and insurance giant, Allstate.
At a time when so much is written about the decline of long term client - agency relationships, this one receives plenty of interest.
The article reveals the five things Lisa Cochrane, Allstate EVP of integrated marketing and Nina Abnee, Burnett EVP of account management learnt from having survived and subsequently prospered from a difficult period in 2003.
They identify 5 important learnings to building a successful long term client – agency relationship:
A few weeks back we had the pleasure of presenting a paper to theANA Financial Management Committee in New York.
We were also extremely fortunate to have two of our champions, Kim McMillon (who implemented at Hanesbrands) and Zac Belcher (key driver of the global roll-out at Procter & Gamble) provide their stories and insights.
A key message of our presentation was that an effective Agency Management program can be used as a lever to improve many aspects of financial performance.
Click here to read/write comments