Agency Land

Julian Cole grew up in the industry. His parents ran a TV production company and told him two things: start your own agency, and you'll be washed up by 45. He started at Naked, pioneered comms planning in Australia, then moved to New York as a strategy director at BBH despite never having written a brief or worked with a creative team. He spent two years making zero work and wondered if he'd ever be found out. Then he led comms planning for the PlayStation 4 launch, the highest selling console in gaming history, moved to BBDO, built the comms team from four to 17, and won Webby Digital Agency of the Year two years running.Then he walked away at the top of his game.In this conversation he talks about the day BBH lost Google Chrome and 30% of the agency got fired by desk phone, why a junior strategist rewriting his deck was the wake-up call he needed, why great work happens between round 14 and round 15 of creative feedback, and what it actually costs to leave New York for a life in Portugal. He also makes the case that in the age of AI, anyone can find the answer, but the real skill is being able to defend it.Find Julian at https://www.juliancolestrategy.com/ and check out the Strategy Finishing School.Got a question, topic or guest suggestion? [email protected] or visit youregoodgetbetter.comSpecial thanks to DOUBLESTAR.CO and thanks to PhaseOne and Fat Cat Music for the use of their track Crash & Burn feat. Northlane.

Clive Burcham left home at 15, talked his way into a regional TV station, and by 16 was writing, producing and directing his own show. He went on to become the creative director of the Comedy Channel by 25, built the Conscious Organisation into one of Australia's defining social media agencies, sold it to WPP, bought it back for a fraction of the price, survived the GFC, helped set up Nestle's first digital acceleration team across 29 countries, and became a founding partner in Global Citizen, which has redeployed over $50 billion into ending extreme poverty. Then he burnt out, retreated to the countryside, bred Wagyu and homeschooled his kids.In this conversation he talks about why 65% of entrepreneurs have ADHD and what that means for agency life, putting a pirate in a nunnery when he sold to WPP, the moment in India where an obnoxious watch on his wrist made him question everything, and why the relationships you build and the things you survive are worth more than any revenue number. He also makes the case that rush is the enemy of intimacy, busyness is not a badge of honour, and that breakdowns are where every breakthrough begins.Find Clive Burcham on LinkedIn and find Compadres a https://wearecompadres.com/Got a question, topic or guest suggestion? [email protected] or visit youregoodgetbetter.comSpecial thanks to DOUBLESTAR.CO and thanks to PhaseOne and Fat Cat Music for the use of their track Crash & Burn feat. Northlane.

Kady O'Connell moved from Ireland to Sydney knowing nobody, got deported after leaving a toxic agency that was holding her visa hostage, turned that into seven months of travel, and came back to build Kady Creative from a kitchen table into an award-winning branding agency that built over 200 brands. Then in 2025, she closed the doors. Not because she had to, but because she wanted to.In this conversation she talks about the dopamine addiction of agency chaos, wrapping your entire identity in a business that will never love you back, why every problem in agency life has a first and last name, and what it actually feels like to walk away from something you built from nothing. She also makes the case that self-sacrifice isn't leadership and that nobody on their deathbed is going to care about that client email you agonised over.Find Kady at https://kadyoconnell.com/ Got a question, topic or guest suggestion? [email protected] or visit youregoodgetbetter.comSpecial thanks to DOUBLESTAR.CO and thanks to PhaseOne and Fat Cat Music for the use of their track Crash & Burn feat. Northlane.

Jonathan Pease started his career at BBDO New York, came back to Australia, co-founded Tong (an ideas agency he sold to STW/AKQA), judged Australia's Next Top Model for five seasons, launched a fashion label into 13 countries, and is the founding creative director of Sown Hearts and Minds, which has raised close to $100 million for medical research. He also wrote Winning the Room, a book about pitching that belongs on every agency person's shelf.In this conversation he talks about what BBDO New York taught him about work ethic and treating everyone the same regardless of status, why being the only Australian in a 1,500-person agency was an advantage, the founder trap where your team shields you from the truth, and why the biggest mistake in any pitch is treating it like a one-way performance. He also makes the case that in a world where AI is about to make all content look the same, the only thing left that differentiates you is how you make people feel in the room.Find JP on LinkedIn and defintel get his book Winning the Room.Got a question, topic or guest suggestion? [email protected] or at youregoodgetbetter.com

Katja Forbes founded an agency, sold it, ran design for the company that acquired her, wrote a book, and somehow taught at university through all of it. In this conversation she talks about the loneliness of being a sole founder, why the maths of mid-sized agency life rarely work, the moment she claimed her space in a room full of men, and why asking for help is the only real survival strategy in agency land.Find out more and get a copy of Machine Customers https://www.thecxevolutionist.ai/Got a question, topic or guest suggestion? [email protected] youregoodgetbetter.com