Katy Wright is trying to be less British. 鈥淏ritish people tend to list all the reasons why something can鈥檛 be done,鈥 she says. 鈥淥ne thing I鈥檝e learned from our American cousins: they鈥檙e not shy about talking about what they鈥檝e done well.鈥 As chief executive officer of FCB London, she鈥檚 had to counteract that British tendency to play down what she 鈥 and by extension the creative agency that she runs 鈥 is capable of.
Only an American-born company like Chicago-founded FCB could take the story of Albert Lasker popularising orange juice as a drink and turn it into a foundational myth. A more cynical British mind (admittedly, like mine) would look for ways to scoff at the idea 鈥 how revolutionary was the idea of squeezing a fruit to get juice out of it 1916? People have been making wine from grapes since at least 4,000 BC.
It鈥檚 that kind of cynicism that Katy has learned to challenge from her colleagues on the other side of the Atlantic. 鈥淭here鈥檚 so much positivity,鈥 she says, impersonating an American business caricature: "We鈥檙e number one! We鈥檙e number one!"
The London CEO isn鈥檛 quite comfortable with that level of sports-fan bravado, even when her agency wins pitches and delivers historic growth for clients, but she鈥檚 keen on 鈥渢aking time to congratulate yourself. Celebrate the work with your team. Celebrate your people. Yes, there are awards 鈥 which bring creative fame 鈥 But there鈥檚 also culture, which matters just as much[...] Even in your own career, you have to stop and enjoy the view sometimes.鈥
Luckily Katy reports into a global leadership team led by a CEO who鈥檚 Canadian, not American. Tyler Turnbull helps her to curb her British self-doubt in a balanced, slightly less brash way. 鈥淚 love working for FCB. I love working for a boss who lets me be the strangest person in the room, sometimes the most entertaining, sometimes completely unpredictable 鈥 but he鈥檚 good with that. And that鈥檚 so important. Because we have to keep learning as leaders.鈥
Going into last year, Katy and her fellow leaders across the network realised they have strengths that other agencies don鈥檛. 鈥淲e know each other. We鈥檙e aligned. And we鈥檙e behind the single most important thing 鈥 the work. Because the work is the product,鈥 she says. 鈥淭hat focus comes from Tyler and how the business has been positioned. It was there before Tyler, but we鈥檝e really doubled down on it. And that鈥檚 what excites me.鈥
It鈥檚 brought success. 鈥淟et鈥檚 talk about 2023,鈥 says Katy. 鈥淚t was probably the most successful year the agency has ever had in London. That鈥檚 not very British of me to say 鈥 but I鈥檓 learning. Then we hit 2024鈥 which turned out to be an even more successful year.鈥 The agency 鈥減retty much doubled鈥 its revenue in the space of two years. She continues, defying her Britishness. 鈥淵eah, it鈥檚 quite impressive, actually.鈥
Naturally, she wants that trend to continue, but not at the expense of the work. 鈥淔inancial success has to come with creative success,鈥 she underlines, highlighting how proud she is of FCB London鈥檚 2024 creative for toilet roll brand Andrex. It illustrates what she wants the agency to be known for. 鈥淚鈥檓 so excited for what鈥檚 coming. Because fame has to deliver growth for our clients,鈥 she says, referencing one of the network鈥檚 mantras. 鈥溾楥reativity as an economic multiplier鈥 isn鈥檛 just a glib statement. We鈥檙e in the business to grow our clients鈥 businesses.鈥
She attributes part of the agency鈥檚 success to a less hierarchical structure. 鈥淭hat slow, bureaucratic process, where everything has to go up the chain, where someone says, "Let me write an email," but then they have to delegate it to someone else 鈥 that鈥檚 not how we work.鈥
Instead, FCB had a system it calls 鈥楾he Fix鈥. 鈥淚t鈥檚 about getting the right people together from the start, making decisions early, and only bringing in leadership when we鈥檙e actually needed. You have to trust people and give them autonomy. And that comes from the top down 鈥 from our global leadership team.鈥
To run a highly successful business, Katy believes you need a clear vision and focus. And that comes from the top. 鈥淧art of our success has been learning from others,鈥 she says, rattling off a list of other FCB leaders she admires and loves to bounce ideas off. People like Emma Armstrong, CEO of FCB New York, Kelly Graves, CEO at FCB Chicago, Bryan Kane, CEO at FCB Canada, Thabang Skwambane, CEO at Nahana Communications Group in South Africa, Paul Wilson, CEO at FCB New Zealand. And she鈥檚 always phoning up Dheeraj Sinha, who leads the FCB Group in India, who recently popped in to see Katy while he was on holiday in London.
鈥淚 just don鈥檛 think other people have that,鈥 she says. 鈥淎nd ultimately, I love hanging out with these people.
Then you take that dynamic, and you show up at a global pitch. Instead of sitting there introducing ourselves, we鈥檙e already laughing and making jokes 鈥 we鈥檙e comfortable, we鈥檙e happy. That鈥檚 where success comes from 鈥 being super focused on people.鈥
That human closeness extends to how Katy likes to partner with brands. Marketers don鈥檛 just want agencies to provide a service for them anymore. The good ones are looking for agencies they can truly partner with. 鈥淎gencies that can advise, support, direct, and prove the value of their marketing,鈥 she says. 鈥淏ecause marketing is an investment, not a spend. That鈥檚 been said since the beginning of time, but partnership is what makes that true.鈥
That鈥檚 easily said, but getting there takes effort. 鈥淧artnerships are built on trusting relationships.
And you don鈥檛 build that overnight,鈥 says the CEO. 鈥淵ou certainly don鈥檛 get it in a pitch. But what you do get is a sense of:
鈥榃ould I want to be on the bus with these people?'
鈥榃ould they be working on December 26th, calling me to check if we got something through?鈥
鈥榃ould they care enough to check in on my team when someone is sick?鈥
鈥淭hat鈥檚 the real stuff, and we don鈥檛 talk about it enough,鈥 she says.
What trusting partnerships are built on is clear to Katy: 鈥淵ou don鈥檛 rest on your laurels, and it doesn鈥檛 feel transactional. Agencies fail when relationships become purely transactional. So maybe we just do things differently. Maybe we hold ourselves accountable to a different level. Maybe we actually feel responsible for delivering what we promise. Because trust isn鈥檛 something you can just say 鈥 you have to build it. That鈥檚 what sets us apart.鈥
And sometimes, sacrifices are necessary to protect those relationships. Katy says one her highlights of 2024 was deciding not to pitch on a particular account, after realising that the creative ambition and budget weren鈥檛 the right fit for FCB London. 鈥淚 said no, but it wasn鈥檛 glib. I knew I wanted it for what it was.
And I have a personal drive for certain verticals.鈥 Recognising that she couldn鈥檛 let personal desires affect the whole agency, she resisted the draw.
鈥淚f you chase revenue, you lose sight of what your product actually is,鈥 she continues. 鈥淲hen you forget your product, you stop understanding your own value.
And of course growth doesn鈥檛 just come from winning new business 鈥 it comes from adding value to the business you already have. 鈥淚f you鈥檙e always in a 鈥榮inking boat鈥 mindset, you never take time to steady the ship. But if you run things smartly, focus on delivering on your clients鈥 goals, it opens up opportunities naturally.鈥
Aside from 鈥榗reativity as an economic multiplier鈥, an older mantra of FCB is 鈥楴ever Finished鈥 鈥 a mindset that Katy most readily applies to the talent in her agency. 鈥淵ou can鈥檛 do it alone. It has to disseminate through the team, so they feel empowered to walk into a room and say: 鈥榃hy don鈥檛 we do this?鈥欌 There鈥檚 that American self-confidence again.
Culture has been crucial to FCB London鈥檚 recent success. 鈥淎re we creating an environment where people can show up as themselves,鈥 Katy wonders often
The FCB London CEO only just got round to watching 鈥楾ed Lasso鈥 and it says a lot about her views on what culture really means. She came into the office raving about it to CCO Owen Lee. 鈥淗e just started laughing,鈥 she says.
鈥淚 said, 鈥楬e has this sign that says, "Believe"!鈥
鈥淎nd he said 鈥業 know what you鈥檙e about to say 鈥 you鈥檙e about to say, you鈥檙e Ted Lasso. You鈥檙e not just Ted Lasso 鈥 you鈥檙e Ted Lasso and Rebecca Welton rolled into one.鈥欌
Katy鈥檚 leadership style was already delivering the success that fictional football team AFC Richmond finds in the show. 鈥淥ne of the biggest things that struck me was this idea: if you can create an environment where people feel safe, have autonomy, and believe in themselves, they will care 鈥 and that鈥檚 what creates a great culture.鈥
She actually wrote a little manifesto for herself about this. 鈥淚t鈥檚 really embarrassing, but I鈥檒l read it to you,鈥 she cringes, continuing:
鈥淲e should talk more about culture 鈥 about the power of culture.
鈥淲e should talk more about how walking into this building doesn鈥檛 feel like 鈥楢merican Psycho鈥
鈥淲e should talk more about how clients would rather work from our office, because it feels like double art and not triple maths.
鈥淲e should talk more about how clients feel comfortable enough to tell us what they worry about and what they don鈥檛.
鈥淎nd we should celebrate it.鈥
Katy鈥檚 not going to look back when she retires and think about the awards on her shelf. 鈥淚t will be seeing others become far better than I ever was, watching them grow and ascend 鈥 that鈥檚 what success means to me.鈥
That鈥檚 why she and her team have been focused on building their creative department the right way. 鈥淲e鈥檝e been very conscious about the people we鈥檙e bringing in,鈥 she says. 鈥淚鈥檝e interviewed brilliant people and thought, 鈥楾hey鈥檙e amazing 鈥 but they鈥檙e not the right fit for us.鈥 And that鈥檚 so hard.鈥
Holding companies and agency networks all have tech stacks and data that now power their creative solutions for brands. And understanding the power of that is key to drive value. 鈥淲e鈥檙e already ahead of that curve,鈥 says Katy, before taking things in a metaphorical direction. 鈥淲e鈥檙e in the Chinese Year of the Snake. The snake represents change. And change is inevitable. But one absolute truth remains 鈥 great creativity delivers results.
鈥淲e don鈥檛 need to be a martech company, but we do need to understand the tools we have and apply them smartly to our clients鈥 businesses. That said, our role isn鈥檛 just to flood the market with noise. If you understand contextualisation and personalisation in e-commerce, you can help clients use those tools effectively.鈥
She recently heard someone from a platform advising a brand to create 4,000 versions of the same ad. 鈥淣o. Hyper-contextualisation is one thing, but it has to be meaningful. Otherwise, it鈥檚 just pollution. And that鈥檚 where brands end up showing up next to dodgy content 鈥 and we all know how that plays out.鈥
It鈥檚 the core of creativity that continues to give Katy drive. 鈥淚 still love what we do. I still get excited about it. Someone sends me a picture of something we鈥檝e made, or I see it out in the world, standing in front of our own work. I still get that hairs-on-the-back-of-your-neck feeling.
Katy wants that passion to translate into a tide that lifts all boats, driving her competitors to create better work as well as her own agency. 鈥淭his new era has to be about the work, not just the talk. I always say when hiring, 鈥楧on鈥檛 tell me you鈥檙e funny. Be funny.鈥 When it comes to creative leadership, the question is always: 鈥榃hat is the work?鈥 Because at the end of the day, we want the creative superstars 鈥 the people who make the work happen.鈥
To get the right talent to power that era, UK advertising has a job to do to show people what a great industry this is to work in. 鈥淭his is our responsibility,鈥 says Katy. 鈥淔undamentally, you understand the career path of a doctor, the career path of a lawyer, because there are books about it in nurseries. But there鈥檚 no book that says 鈥楢dvertising Copywriter鈥.
鈥淭his year, I want to do something that brings clarity to career paths in this industry 鈥 so people can see where a career in advertising can take them. I also want to champion creativity as the driving force across our global network 鈥 because it鈥檚 the red thread that connects everything we do.鈥
And she wants everyone to have fun doing it. 鈥淲e are in an entertainment business. We work in a creative industry that is hugely important to the UK economy. And honestly, it鈥檚 a really fucking fun thing to do. In how many jobs could a woman my age wear jeans and a T-shirt to work as a CEO, instead of having to be in some Chanel number all day? This job is special.鈥
2025 brings more change for all agencies (not to mention the looming potential of the Omnicom-IPG merger). But there are fundamentals that Katy is confident will remain. 鈥淚n my mind, 2025 is about creativity, creativity, creativity,鈥 she says. 鈥淚 know there鈥檚 that thing where if you say something three times, it sticks鈥
鈥淵ou鈥檝e got to focus on what you do best. That鈥檚 the work. And that can mean so many things 鈥 it鈥檚 not just about making a great TV ad. But I really want us to get to the end of the year and look back and say: 鈥楪od, there were some absolute bangers.鈥欌
An era of bangers? Sign us up.