Setting Up for 2026, The Monthly

Hi, and Happy New Year.

I hope you had the chance to properly switch off over Christmas. A real reset. Because if the conversations at the end of 2025 taught us anything, it's that 2026 is going to reward the agencies who are intentional, steady, and strategically focused… not the ones who simply work harder.

Clients are more cautious. Budgets take longer. Priorities shift faster. And loyalty isn't guaranteed just because work gets delivered.

You can see it in everything we explored across December, from the client-side uncertainty, to the pressure on ROI, to the very real fragility inside some agency-client relationships. This is the moment for agencies to get themselves into shape, not with panic, but with discipline and clarity.

So this first edition is all about setting you up well for the year ahead. Not with overwhelm. Not with a long list of resolutions. Just a handful of practical insights you can use immediately to steady your team, strengthen your relationships, and move into 2026 feeling prepared rather than reactive.

Practical insights to set you up for 2026

1. Focus on depth, not just output

Agencies that win this year will be the ones who build resilience inside their accounts. Broader relationships. Better business conversations. Clearer demonstrations of value.

If you want to increase stickiness, look beyond deliverables to the wider experience you create. Clients stay when losing you would genuinely feel costly.

2. Use AI intentionally, or risk losing capability

AI is useful, but unguarded AI use has consequences. When teams depend on it for thinking rather than support, critical capability slips. Standards drift. Knowledge weakens.

A simple internal AI policy protects your IP, your consistency, and your talent.

3. Strengthen ownership with better communication

If your team isn't delivering at the level you need, start with clarity, not control.

The CCE model, Clarity, Context, Encouragement, transforms how people respond to direction and helps them step into true ownership of outcomes. It's one of the quickest ways to strengthen delivery.

4. Align Client Services and Strategy

Clients feel the difference instantly when Strategy and CS operate as one team. Alignment stops CS being seen as "project managers" and positions them as strategic translators, something clients value deeply, especially this year.

5. Actively reduce relationship risk

Every agency should be asking one question this year: what's the cost of disinvestment for this client?

If it's low, the relationship is fragile. Broaden the sphere of influence, understand the business better, and increase the experience value you deliver.

Spotlight of the month: Tessa Grint

I'm also excited to introduce you to Tessa Grint, who recently ran a brilliant session for our Client Services Collective on How to avoid burnout, for yourself and your team.

Tessa is an exceptional leadership coach who supports agency leaders navigating pressure, pace and the emotional load of their roles. Her work landed so well with the CSD community because it was real, practical, and deeply human. Exactly what leaders need heading into a year that will demand clarity, confidence, and resilience.

If you're feeling stretched, or you know your team is running hot, Tessa is one to keep close.

From me this month: It Takes Two

To kick off the year, I'm sharing early access to my new report: It Takes Two.

This research digs into where agency-client relationships actually break down, and what both sides need to build genuine, long-lasting partnership. It explores the small moments that create the early cracks, the expectations that quietly drift, and the conditions that build clarity and trust over time.

Jo x