Four Lessons I Learned In The Past Year As An Agency Owner During Covid

Founder and CEO of Rebellious PR, specializing in working with underrepresented founders.

I got vaccinated last weekend. I think I dissociated for that entire day. I was not sure what my emotional response should be. Getting vaccinated is exciting, a sign of a more normalish future, a shift back into familiarity. But in the days since, I’ve started to feel a sense of dread — because now, as an agency leader, I am going to have to make difficult decisions around what the at-work future holds for not only myself but my staff. The way forward feels murky and unclear, despite the optimism of a post-Covid world. 

Most agency leaders agree that returning to in-person work will be a slow process, and as employers, we will have to offer individualized at-work options for staff. This feels easier for larger agencies that have money and real estate to ease their transition. The risk is there, of course, but it’s a calculated risk with a little more padding. For the majority of the industry — those that make up the small and medium-sized agency category — the future can be anything that we want it to be. With fewer workplace precedents than large agencies are beholden to, there will be no such thing as an industry standard anymore. We can move on to new models of work-life balance and explore what an office (if you want one) could look and feel like.

In sitting down to sketch out what the options are, it feels important to apply the learnings from the last 13 months. What worked about being remote? What did we learn from the challenges? What supports staff’s happiness — our bottom line — and is not just lighting money on fire? If we’re going to develop something new, we need to assess what we now know.

Here’s what I learned as an agency CEO in the last year:

• In-person is not always better. At more old-school agencies, there are a lot of face-to-face conversations, whether it’s a rigid non-remote policy (that quickly disappeared in 2020) or just doing a dog-and-pony show every time you have a client meeting or new business pitch. This year proved that you sure can accomplish a lot from the seat at your home desk — and sometimes it’s not only more efficient but more effective.

• Maybe we don’t need to live out of a suitcase. I used to travel a lot. Between trade shows, client meetings, press tours and visiting our second location in Los Angeles, I found myself on a plane about every three weeks. For the most part, I loved it — or at least I thought I did. The truth is that as soon as I was grounded, I started caring for my body in a much more intentional way. I haven’t felt this good in years. I was also emotionally present at home. What people don’t realize about having a packed travel schedule is that you are always thinking about that next trip. Emotionally, you live nowhere because you are constantly somewhere other than your home. People seem split on what the future holds for business travel, but I’m definitely in agreement with Bill Gates that 50% of business travel will disappear. This last year has proven that we can conduct business without leaving town, or at least a lot less often. 

• We have to support working moms. I’ve never worked at an agency that has offered any kind of flexibility for working moms aside from a pump room. This has to change. Our current agency structures were initially put in place in the late 1800s when only men went to work. Agency structure is long overdue for a refresh. In Public Relations, women make up 60%-80% of the workforce, yet the pregnancy and parental policies are overwhelmingly bad. Most agencies only offer what they are legally required to. The majority of moms I know in the industry struggle or are full of guilt — or both. They feel like they are either letting their work team down or letting their kids down. The pandemic proved that working moms are actual superheroes, accomplishing a near-impossible task on a daily basis. 

• Prioritize staff happiness over client money. I feel like this sentiment will be hard to hear for the legacy agency execs, but it’s undeniable that your workforce is your most valuable asset as an agency. Why force everybody on your team to put up with abusive and difficult clients? This year tested me. I am human, just like everyone else, and my mental health has struggled at times. The last thing I want on my mind after I walk the four feet from my bed to my desk is an abusive client not valuing the work my team is producing. There will always be new clients and fresh retainers. This year proved that having a solid foundation of trust between management and staff can make all the difference in performance and results. Culture is not something you can fake with team bonding days. Real solid work culture starts with trust. You’ve got to know when the money isn’t worth your team’s mental health. 

So what does all of this mean for the future of the agency?

It means being better to our people. Get rid of the layers of self-built bureaucracy and arbitrary rules about in-person work and agency culture that was probably set in the ’60s. Let yourself be open to innovation and breaking the mold. “Pivot or die” may have been the mantra of early Covid when it came to business, but now we need a new mantra: “Evolve or get left behind.” 

I think my biggest fear is that everything goes back to business as usual. Business as usual wasn’t perfect and we shouldn’t strive to implement a status quo that doesn’t leave room for massive improvement. We have an opportunity and an obligation to build back better. Let’s not forget to look back as we plan forward.

Forbes Agency Council is an invitation-only community for executives in successful public relations, media strategy, creative and advertising agencies. Do I qualify?

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Author: Evie Smith, Forbes Councils Member