Agile Cooperation between Communication Agencies and Companies

ABSTRACT

Communications agencies and communications departments of companies are mutually dependent. The agencies need companies as clients, while the companies need agencies primarily for their expertise and resources. However, cooperation between communications agencies and client companies is often fraught with fundamental problems, in particular due to cost issues and differing expectations on each side. This study shows that implementing agility is an effective approach for meeting these challenges and those of the rapidly changing, volatile environment in which both operate, for a successful client-agency cooperation. Due to their experience with many different companies as clients, based experts from public relations and advertising agencies were interviewed on the subject of agility. From the interview results, it becomes clear that a consistently implemented agility, with characteristics such as a flat working structure, iterative processes with many evaluations, and innovative collaboration tools, is beneficial for an effective client-agency relationship in an uncertain and volatile environment, especially in the field of online communication. In addition, agility may help to counter the typical client-agency problems of hidden information, hidden action and hidden intention. The results lead us to a model for the ideal-typical agile cooperation between agencies and communications departments of companies.

Disclosure statement

No potential conflict of interest was reported by the authors.

Additional information

Funding

This research has been funded by the Academic Society for Management & Communication, a joint initiative of four universities and almost 40 companies in the German-speaking part of Europe. The non-profit has been active since 2010 with the aim of actively shaping the future of corporate communications through joint research and knowledge sharing (www.academic-society.net).