IAS Clients

• List of Clients
• Developing People's Potential
• Testimonials

Leo Burnett Client Success Story (Inside Out 2000)

Leo Burnett is one of 20 or so foreign advertising agencies competing in Japan, the world's second largest advertising market, as measured by expenditure in major media. Most of us are major global companies (In Leo's case, we now have 280 operating units in 81 countries) but are dwarfed by the major Japanese agencies in their home market.

It has always been difficult for us to attract the best talent, a real challenge in an industry almost totally dependent upon the quality of our people for our success. Leo once said that every night, our most valuable assets went down in the elevator.

From a financial perspective, I inherited a very stable organisation when I assumed the President's position in August 1997. That was all to quickly change. As a result of a significant budget cut by our largest client, and the loss of another significant piece of business, I was faced with having to reduce the numbers of employees as the only meaningful way of bringing costs in line with revenue short term.

My predecessors had not developed local management sufficiently, so the senior executive committee comprised 5 expatriates, and only two Japanese. This was an untenable situation, one that severely limited our ability to attract significant local clients.

On top of this short-term challenge, we were also faced with the more permanent challenge facing our industry. That is the increasing speed with which marketing expenditure was embracing interactivity and the whole digital/internet revolution.

These factors combined to unsettle our organisation, and a survey of employees in mid 1998 revealed an alarming level of distrust of management and uncertainty about the future direction and viability of our organization.

It was about this time that we had the good fortune of meeting Brian Martin. As most people familiar with IAS will know, Brian spend ten years in Japan as President of Levi`s and later as President of Triumph. He was therefore uniquely experienced in turning around companies in the unique Japanese environment.

He personally put together and moderated a series of programs that focused on creating an environment for success. The emphasis was on creativity and innovation, key in all business, absolutely vital to one dependent on ideas and teamwork for its prosperity. Because the behaviour of leaders is the single most important factor in determining creativity in our people, we focused on creating together purpose, vision and values that were developed jointly, shared and owned by all.

Some of the significant behavioural changes I've witnessed are a greater willingness to take risk, decisiveness rather than lengthy debate, a greater sense of urgency, really actively listening to other's points of view and ideas, and finally a more obvious sense of fun. At our end of year party in 1999, the organisers were confident enough to create a mock trial of senior management for their past transgressions. Charges included the crime of "bonus cut" and "fortune telling". Were acquitted of there and all the other charges! (In fact, the bonus cut that was necessary in 1998 to achieve our budget profitability, was paid back in full, plus more, to every employee in 1999!)

We are well on the way to achieving our 3-Year Goal of becoming the Leading Global Agency brand in Japan. We will measure our success on three criteria. Size (revenue and profitability), quality (business building and award winning creative) and reputation (to attract the highest caliber employees and clients).

In 1999, Leo Burnett in Japan grew revenue by 9% (in a market that shrank by 5%), increased operating profit by 150%, produced a number of truly breakthrough campaigns for our major clients like Phillip Morris, Proctor and Gamble, and Coca Cola, won our first significant Japanese client, and reduced the turnover rate amongst star performers.

Are we there? Of course not. But we can see the light shining very brightly at the end of the tunnel.

Phil Fiebig, President of Leo Burnett, Japan, 2002