As the advertising industry evolves—how is strategy evolving along with it? We interviewed 550+ senior strategists around the world to get an inside look at their challenges and opportunities during a time of fierce competition. Get the sample report: http://bit.ly/2BgdzqU.

1. 4A’s StratFest 2018

2. The study
Second annual Future of Strategy
report
Global survey of >500 planners
and strategists
Essays from expert contributors
from agencies and brands
WWW.WARC.COM © 2017 2

3. WWW.WARC.COM © 2017 3
The state of strategy

4. 4WWW.WARC.COM © 2016
4WWW.WARC.COM © 2017
57% believe strategists are gaining influence within agencies

5. 5WWW.WARC.COM © 2016
5WWW.WARC.COM © 2017
55% believe strategists are gaining influence with their clients

6. 6WWW.WARC.COM © 2016
6WWW.WARC.COM © 2017
56% expect their teams to expand in the next 12 months

7. I think planning is suffering
hugely from clients being
uneducated on how creative
strategy and planning work.
Much of it is coming from a
stress and fear environment.
Planner

8. WWW.WARC.COM © 2017 8
Doing more with less

9. 9WWW.WARC.COM © 2016
9WWW.WARC.COM © 2017
66% say budget cuts have affected their team

10. 10WWW.WARC.COM © 2016
10WWW.WARC.COM © 2017
68% believe a lack of training means ‘craft skills’ under threat

11. 11WWW.WARC.COM © 2016
11WWW.WARC.COM © 2017
Planners need to step away from their desks

12. Today’s marketer is getting
comfortable with fast and
cheap at the expense of
smart. This doesn’t bode well
for the state of strategy.
Head of Planning, Canada

13. WWW.WARC.COM © 2017 13
The competition for strategy

14. 14WWW.WARC.COM © 2016
14WWW.WARC.COM © 2017
Consultancies are seen as a threat

15. If I’m a brand strategist, I might
work for a brand owner, a creative
agency or a consultancy, or a lead
agency or media owner, or God-
knows-what…I might be working
with creatives of an in-house
agency, or from my own agency, or
someone else’s agency.
Frank Reitgassl, Director, Brand Strategy & Creative, Mondelēz

16. Why can’t strategy in a
creative agency be a
revenue center?
Shekhar Deshpande, JWT

17. WWW.WARC.COM © 2017 17
Opportunities and threats

18. 18WWW.WARC.COM © 2016
18WWW.WARC.COM © 2017
Data and upstream strategy are big opportunities

19. 19WWW.WARC.COM © 2016
19WWW.WARC.COM © 2017
…but downstream tactics are taking too much time

20. The most fundamental scale on
which to judge planners is one that
runs from Grand Strategists to Ad
Tweakers. And nowadays there are
rather too many agencies whose
planners’ skills and experience are
much too near the ad-tweaking end
of the scale.
Stephen King, JWT, 30 years ago

21. WWW.WARC.COM © 2017 21
Skills and specialisms

22. 22WWW.WARC.COM © 2016
22WWW.WARC.COM © 2017
Wanted: ‘Big picture’ thinkers and inquiring minds

23. In summary
Feeling of optimism
Undercut by client budget cuts
Sense that planners are not
thriving in current structures
WWW.WARC.COM © 2017 23

24. In order to see the ‘big
picture’ planners will have to
step outside of marketing and
upskill in all areas of the
business.
Chief Strategy Officer

25. More from WARC
Global Marketing Index: Join our panel
of 2,000+ experienced executives
WARC Awards: Open for entries
November 1 (or be a judge!)
Get in touch:
eva.kasten@warc.com
WWW.WARC.COM © 2017 25

26. Get in touch
Eva Kasten
President, WARC Americas
EVA.KASTEN@WARC.COM +1 202 778 0680 2233 WISCONSIN AVE NW, SUITE 535, WASHINGTON, DC 20007, US