A couple weeks ago, I spent two days leading a workshop for account executives. In AMR's AE Bootcamps -- we talk a lot about how an AE is basically running a division of the agency and is responsible for the financial health of their division. Our goal is to help AEs realize that they have [...]
How do you track billable time in an agency, and how many hours should ad agency employees work? This is a question that comes up all the time in my work with agencies. The expectation in terms of a work week ranges from 37.5 hours a week to 50 hours a week although most agencies [...]
Agency management can be a challenge as the economy teeters back and forth between recovery and residual crud. Things feel like they're getting better and according to all the agencies we're talking to -- they are. But it's not all blue skies yet. I'm not trying to go all Eyeore on you...but let's stay careful. We've [...]
Don't get carried away with your enthusiasm about the increase in business activity. We are recovering from the Great Recession. You've survived it and have earned the right to celebrate. A little. But now is not the time to take your eye off the prize. In this recovery period, agency management can be tricky, because we're [...]
What do you do about late (or non-existent) time sheets? Did I hear an echo? It seems that this question is asked again and again, year after year. The only modification in the conversation is whether or not you should do time sheets at all. (Watch for that discussion later this week.) The attitude of [...]
For the past 12 years, Agency Management Roundtable has conducted an annual salary and benefits survey looking at the trends in small and medium sized agencies. The survey results report allow agency owners to compare their salaries by position with how the rest of the country's salaries. The results are also presented by agency size [...]
Should you be concerned about possible fraud in your business? You bet. Here are some things to pay attention to when it comes to business fraud prevention. You may think that because your agency is a small business that you aren’t susceptible to employee theft and fraud. In our work with agencies, the biggest problem is [...]
An annual salary increase should be tied to profitability not the calendar. We don't recommend automatic annual salary increases. When learning how to manage payroll, we do wholeheartedly recommend is a salary plan that is fair and rewarding to all employees that inspires them to go above and beyond for the agency and its clients. [...]
All debt is not bad debt -- the question you need to ask yourself is 'should my advertising agency take on debt?" Every business faces the issues surrounding cash flow and keeping the money moving in and back out the door. Advertising agencies are no exception. Until I actually owned my own agency, I didn't [...]
