Brew Bytes

The Agency Model Is Broken, And The People Who Built It Are Saying So

Episode Summary

Everyone blames AI for what's coming to the agency world. Sameer and Lawrence, two founders who've run agencies across the UK, Saudi Arabia and the UAE for a combined three decades argue the model was cracking long before AI. Their charge: it's self-serving by design, and the people who actually power the work get the smallest share.

Episode Notes

Host Nadeem Ibrahim plays devil's advocate, defending the craft agencies get right, from the Mad Men era to today.  While Sameer and Lawrence make the case for tearing the model down to its studs and rebuilding it around transparency, specialists over headcount, and the one thing AI can't replace: the human element. A conversation for anyone who runs an agency, works in one, or signs the invoice.

In this episode:

• Why the agency model is "self-serving" — and who really gets the share
• "Revenue is vanity, profit is sanity" — a £200k lesson learned young
• The retainer problem when AI puts the knowledge in the client's hand
• 68% of agency staff demotivated — and the exodus to freelance
• The pitch theatre: 30 people in the room, 2 doing the talking
• Match the specialist, not the logo
• The human element AI can't touch

Samir founded the agency in 2009; Lawrence joined as chief strategist after a digital-media career running back to the .com boom.

Grab a coffee. Let's talk about the future while we're still building it.

🎙️ Guest: Sameer Rehman and Lawerence Lartey
🎙️ Host: Nadeem Ibrahim
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