In this opening presentation you will hear from Specsavers’ Managing Director Nicola Wardell who has led the evolution of Specsavers Creative Department, into a full service in-house agency, with creativity and customer experience at the heart of its offering. Nicola will share their great talent story, including a talk on:

• The importance of re-framing leadership in-house
• How to build a culture that embraces legacy and newness
• Why ‘bringing the outside in’ should always be at the top of your to do list
• Building future capabilities within a low churn organisation
• Leaving a legacy. Building for the next generation of Specsavers

• The rise of in-housing - debating latest industry trends such as changing consumer behaviours and the proliferation of touchpoints and their impact on how brands operate
• Beyond cost savings – discussing the real benefits and value that in-housing can bring to the business. Measuring the financial value of your work and what performance metrics to use to have a better impact further upstream and across the business
• Working with the senior leadership and improving your stakeholder communication to build a future-proofed in-house agency
• How do you demonstrate your ability to understand the business – from receiving briefs to writing your own briefs
• Collaborating with external agencies – how to build them into your ways of working to streamline innovation and bring new capabilities

Thomas Heilskov will talk about Arla Foods’ journey to building an in-house agency from scratch. He will share the approach taken to setting up the agency and growing it from 8 people to 150 with hubs in several markets. In this session you will find out about:

• Becoming an agency of choice for all Arla brands - creating an in-house agency model and new ways of working fit for building brands in a digital world
• The Barn’s journey and key drivers for growth - integrating creativity and media to overcome silos and create efficiencies. How to deliver on key components comparable to external agencies?
• Operating globally with successful local execution – top tips
• Setting up the agency and determining what to copy from external agency design and ways of working – applying the startup mindset and recruiting the right agency talent

OLIVER, a pioneer in the in-housing revolution and at the forefront of Gen AI adoption across global in-house agencies, presents a session exploring the impact of Generative AI on in-housing practices. Nick Myers and Peter van Jaarsveld will discuss:

• How Gen AI is reshaping in-house operations and workflows
• Challenges of integrating Gen AI, including skill gaps and ethical considerations
• Opportunities Gen AI presents for enhanced efficiency and creativity
• Practical strategies for successful Gen AI adoption in in-house teams

• Unlocking the full potential of creativity - bringing imagination and originality to encourage business driven ideas
• Focus on innovation and brand growth via creativity – creating conditions for creativity to thrive
• Achieving creative excellence – why quality, efficiency and effectiveness matter? How do you successfully drive strategy and creative from in-house
• The art of being a creative leader – discover the rules of creative leadership and how do you build creative capability in-house
• Exploring successful tactics to unleash new and unexpected opportunities - what are the proven ways to streamline creative insight

In-house agencies have a lot to deal with internally and externally. They can be considered by their colleagues as a cheap or inferior option to external agencies who have traditionally led brands through strategy and big production.

As in-house agencies become more prolific, their work needs to follow suit and the best work needs to move the dial for brand. Mat O’Brien, ECD of Three will share how he helped forge their in-house agencies approach through the lens of the brand strategy unlocking great work and a unique hybrid agency model where the in-house agency sits firmly at the top table.

Doing More with Less: How Creative Teams Handle Increased Demand with Limited Budgets

Understanding the surge in content demand:

• Examining the evolving consumer behaviour driving content demand within organisations

Adapting through strategic efficiency:

• Discovering the internal processes and strategies organisations employ to enhance efficiency and meet rising content needs.

Effective collaboration:

• Discussing how organisations are fostering collaboration with stakeholders to effectively plan for and manage demand

The importance of data:

• Identifying the essential data that informs strategic planning and budget allocation for future expenditures

This session will provide valuable insights into how creative teams can adapt and thrive despite heightened demands and limited budgets.

A refreshingly jargon free and fun interactive masterclass from an expert practitioner and author of The Brand Book. Lots to learn and opportunity for a rich Q&A .

• Reawaken your brand understanding - for everyone, whatever your level or role
• How understanding the why and the what of brands can enrich your role and unlock creativity
• Why brands matter. How you figure them out or shuzh them up. How you build them across all customer touch points

• Improving the workflows of creative ops – implementing best practice to excel in creative production and to ensure that your team is working as efficiently as possible
• On the road to maximising resources - bringing structure, process, and metrics to the creative workflow to optimise timeliness, capacity, and costs
• Debating which ways of working can boost your team’s creative output – winning strategies to enhance productivity and culture
• Technology as an enabler - discover the transformative impact of AI enabled technology on creative operations and how it can empower marketers to deliver high-quality content
• Forecasting and reporting best practice – from spend optimisation and reduced production time to resource allocation
• Promoting diversity and gender equality in the creative industries – how to diversify your workforce to achieve operational excellence

Helen is a multi-disciplinary Creative Director with over 20 years’ experience working in top London agencies across print, TV, social and experiential. Most recently, she has set-up an industry leading, in-house creative agency for Shelter. In this session she will talk about their journey to being named “best in-house team”. 

• The power of goal based briefs and changing your in-house team’s perception by the business
• How do you prove the value of your in-house team?
• Focus on creativity – how do you free up more time to be creative? Discover which processes are worth investing in
• Embracing the journey of constant evolution – how do you build the right mindset to grow and adapt?

• Beyond the search for more control and speed – why do brands decide to in-house?
• From getting started with in-housing to the evolution of an existing in-house agency – key steps to consider. Winning in-house models - debating the key success factors that set in-house agencies apart
• Tailoring your in-housing model structure to the business needs – deciding what to bring in-house – from creative and digital to media buying
• The AI revolution – what does it mean to in-housing? Embracing technology to improve efficiency, free up resources and make smart data-driven marketing decisions in-house
• Raising the profile of your team internally and bringing that external mentality and agency mindset into the in-house team. Top tips to a successful key business stakeholder management

Ivan is the Chief Creative Officer for what3words – the global address system that has given every 3 meter square on the planet a unique address of 3 random words. He will share his perspective on creative business culture, the realities of in-house, and why every organisation needs a creative champion.

• No surprises: Lessons learned on the journey from agency to in-house
• Ready Fire Aim: Principles of how we build the brand in our own unique way
• Make new mistakes: The business impact of creativity

Emma leads the LEGO Group’s in-house agency for EMEA. OLA ‘Our LEGO Agency’ is the LEGO Group’s internal integrated Advertising & Design agency which develops all LEGO-branded content including product packaging, TV advertising, digital and social content to in-store campaigns and experiences – communication that helps engage millions of children in physical and digital play. In this presentation, Emma will talk about her role in creating an environment where creativity can thrive. You will hear about:

• Our LEGO Agency’s unique points of difference as an in-house team - a superior understanding of kids, love for the brand and how they feel a huge sense of responsibility to be stewards of this incredible brand
• Lessons learned from a recent campaign, how as an in-house team they can leverage the vast LEGO ecosystem, with cross-company collaboration and agility to bring to life a project across their ecosystem and channels to delight their fans and reach new ones
• Building and nurturing playful teams - viewing the workplace as a playground for the creative and the curious. Attracting talent and cultivating a creative inclusive and diverse culture