Observations from 2025: The Story So Far

With Q1 firmly behind us, the team at AAR have had a busy start to the year. We’ve celebrated our 50th birthday, released important and timely research in Evolution of the Marketing Operating Model and welcomed new members of the team, and all the while, have been reflecting on the changes shaping our industry. 

From CMOs wrestling with the breakneck pace of change to the ‘human touch’ differentiators for pitching agencies that are giving them a competitive edge, there are several themes emerging as we head further into 2025. Here’s a snapshot of what our team is seeing. 

Insights from the intersection

Rebecca Nunneley - Lead Consultant, Creative 

The ‘How’ of Delivering Great Work 

In agency search and selection processes, I’ve noticed a real shift in clients placing equal weight on the how as well as the what. It’s no longer enough for agencies to present a strong strategy or standout creative idea - clients need to understand exactly how it will be delivered.

That means more scrutiny on ways of working, team structure, and operational approach. In the past, the work alone might have won it, but now, agencies that can show a simple and repeatable process of getting to great work, and can hold the clients hand through that process, are standing out.

Paul Phillips - Partner
Pitching to Win

What stood out in the pitch space in the first months of 2025? Winning business through pitching isn’t getting any easier. Here’s what the winning agencies do:

• Only put their A Team on a competitive pitch
• Go the extra mile and do not leave any stone unturned
• Answer the questions asked in the pitch brief, then answer the questions not asked but which the agency considers to be important
• Are overt in their passion, enthusiasm, and overall desire to win the business
• Rehearse and rehearse again
• Don’t worry about the strategy and tactics of other pitching agencies over which they have no control, but focus on their own plan
• Put themselves in a position of the client team being happy for any of the pitching agencies to win, but really wanting the winning agency to win
• Don’t come a close second (no one does)

Andrew Bloch - Lead Consultant, PR, Social, Content and Influencer
Clarity, Chemistry and Curiosity 

Right now, clients seem to be stripping things back. Simplicity is the standout theme. If an agency is genuinely good - can walk the talk across PR, social, content etc. then that’s enough. No need for multiple agencies and unnecessary complications.

Overly cumbersome pitch processes definitely aren’t the theme of the moment. If clients can get to the right answer quickly, with the right people on their side to advise them, then that’s a win.

Chemistry, agility, and pace matter more than ever. Clients want to know these are people they can trust in the trenches.

There’s increasing curiosity around AI - how it can future-proof an organisation, make them smarter, faster, sharper. But there’s also a healthy dose of cynicism. It can’t replace instinct, human creativity, or the gut feel that makes a campaign fly. 

The agencies standing out are blending tech with humanity. They’re confident, not cocky. Clear, not complex. And they’re keeping it simple, whilst making it all feel a bit more real and a lot less rehearsed.

Conversations with CMOs: Getting under the bonnet of marketing operating models

Robin Charney, Partner and Cristiana Spataru, Senior Consultant

Facing into Change 

So far this year, we’ve heard a lot about the pace of change. The pace is not slowing down, but the challenge lies in taking everyone with you on that journey. From the boardroom to the coal face, clear consistent communication and ongoing conversation is key to ensuring people aren’t left behind, people know what is happening and why and, most importantly, the role they play in that change.

What were five interesting insights from the CMO arena this quarter?

1. There are still many challenges in getting marketing a top seat on the board
2. The changes being driven by AI are causing yet another thing marketers need to have an answer to at board level
3. Marketers are exhausted and burn out is prevalent.
4. The new Business As Usual is change
5. Marketers are starting to recognise the language of the 4Ps - People, Partners, Process, Platforms - and to talk internally about their operating model

Victoria Fox - CEO
People and Process

From recent CMO conversations, it's evident that people and processes remain the most pressing challenges. Many leaders are rethinking their organisational structures and evolving capabilities to future-proof their teams. At the same time, there's a growing urgency around refining processes and governance models to enable agility without sacrificing control. Success will depend on aligning these foundations with the pace of change.

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Marketing works when it’s underpinned by a great operating model. With the pressures that have defined the 2020s intensifying, it’s clearer than ever that the ‘how’ of marketing is as important as ‘what’. Through transformation and complexity, the best agencies and marketing leaders will be those who embrace change not as a challenge, but as the new constant - balancing speed with simplicity, ambition with empathy, and innovation with intuition.