How Do CEOs Plan For Change? By Holding Tight to What Doesn’t

Roadmaps are futile, models need to bend without breaking, and CEOs like BBDO’s Nancy Reyes have been forced to accept “the only constant is change and the change will get faster and faster.”

Agencies across the world are grappling with the ad industry consolidating and reshuffling, marketing budgets shrinking, and economic and geopolitical volatility -- all of which has made it difficult to 'plan' for 2026.

The trick, Nancy told LBB, is figuring out what lasts. To “understand your brand deeply enough to know what stays forever, what iterates, and what can be left behind.”

​Omnicom left behind DDB, FCB, and MullenLowe in 2025, meaning BBDO is starting the year, in many markets, integrating the retired brands’ teams and clients. In the midst of uncertainty, the “competitive advantage” is clarity, Nancy said, which requires being clear on what won’t, or shouldn’t, change, and “sweating” business problems in order to solve them. Then, “you're not shooting in the dark. You're solving a real problem with a clear point of view."

Like BBDO, Laughlin Constable and GUT New York are keeping their footing by finding a firm foundation. GUT MD Gus Marmarinos said “certainty doesn’t come from locking in more detail, it comes from anchoring to what actually lasts,” and Laughlin Constable’s CSO, Katy Gajewicz, observed, “The best way to remain nimble is to anchor more deeply in what doesn’t change.”

Every boss expressed the need for direction, not detail. Conviction, not certainty. Purpose, not predictions. A north star is the thing that provides “the confidence to move fast without losing your nerve,” according to Jaimes Leggett. Without those ingredients, businesses risk “confusing motion with progress,” added the co-founder and CEO of indie Today the Brave.

“Long-term planning isn’t about predicting the future anymore. That’s a dead idea. It’s about deciding what you’re here to build.”

​Ogilvy North America’s chief operating officer, Carina De Blois, mounted the same argument. “Every brand has access to the same tools, the same channels, the same data. What separates the ones moving with confidence from the ones scrambling is clarity on what they're building and why it matters.”

She contended staying flexible isn’t the hard bit, though -- it’s staying focused. “The brands struggling with 2026 aren't the ones without agile plans. They're the ones without a clear answer to where they're going.”

When the Bar Gets Busy, “You Don’t Start Chopping Limes”

​Jon Goulding is thinking of the year -- and beyond -- as a “rolling road.” “The traditional fixed roadmap is a fool’s errand,” Atomic London’s CEO said. “We aren’t ‘planning’ for a distant future; we are building the creative infrastructure to react to it faster than anyone else.”

But Jung von Matt SPREE’s managing director, Sven Rebholz, isn’t panicked -- he’s prepared. He used to be a bartender, and “when the rush hits, you don’t start chopping limes.” That work has already been done. It’s the same for businesses. “The world hasn’t suddenly become unplannable. What’s changed is our tolerance for ambiguity and our willingness to do the organisational work required to deal with it.”

​Laura Aldington’s analogy is more bar-fight than bartending. The indie founder quoted Mike Tyson: “Everyone has a plan until they get punched in the face.”

“And in 2026, you can bet those punches will be landing faster and more often than ever,” she quipped. “So the real question isn’t how we plan for the year ahead: it’s how we build a resilient business that can absorb the shocks.”

Alongside two ex-Havas colleagues, she co-founded Supermassive in the midst of the pandemic -- the Australian business has only ever known disruption. “That meant we built an agency designed for volatility from day one,” she said, “flexible by deliberate design, not by exception.”

In New Zealand, TBWA CEO Catherine Harris warns of being late, forgettable, or gullible. "A watch-out for 2026: hype moves fast," she said. "Snake oil salespeople will move faster. There will be no shortage of big promises dressed up as innovation. The winners will be the ones who can spot truth quickly and pressure-test the sell. Use technology to accelerate momentum, not replace judgement."

​OLIVER UK CEO Amina Folarin said most “companies aren’t planning enough in the areas of future skills and capability, in my opinion.” So where are leaders investing their time, money, and headcount?

Right Questions, Right Talent, and Galleries: Where to Invest

Some leaders are spending more time ensuring they’re asking the right questions. Laughlin Constable CSO Katy said for her clients, these include, “Are you truly leading, versus following, trends?” and “Are you consistently creating content that tells emotionally-resonant stories?” BarkleyOKRP’s senior vice president of client experience, Julie Barr, is asking, “What does the consumer need today? How does our offering meet those needs? And where must the brand evolve over the next two to three years?”

MD of UK PR firm The Romans, Kate Brazier, will concentrate on hiring “exceptional people and give them the time, headspace and autonomy to not only plan ahead, but to be able to innovate and embrace opportunities as they come.”

GUT New York’s MD, Gus, will prioritise big platforms that can shapeshift, and, like his peers, return to the unchanging.

“Platforms, algorithms, and formats will keep changing, but people’s need to feel seen, entertained, respected, and connected won’t,” he said. If a brand knows its purpose, and shows up with a creative and culturally-relevant point of view, “it has a powerful north star to follow as everything else accelerates.”

Meanwhile, Aussie indie Today the Brave is ensuring the agency contributes to culture itself, not just on behalf of brands. Last year, it opened a gallery space called Gallery Brave, where it has exhibited works from Banksy, Shepard Fairey, and emerging local artists.

Jung von Matt SPREE in Berlin will invest in operations and frameworks this year. So will New York’s Tinygiant. Founder and EP Veronica Diaferia said the production company has responded to reduced budgets and inflated caution by integrating its long-form and commercial businesses, and being honest about the fact directors need to wear multiple hats. “This flexibility should be encouraged, not stigmatised. We approach emerging technologies like AI in the same way, as tools that can support a director’s vision and process, not as replacements for people or shortcuts to reduce costs.”

On AI, Cheil UK CEO Chris Camacho said he is ensuring he invests in agnostic infrastructure that “allows us to switch or upgrade technologies without collapsing our workflows”. OLIVER UK’s Amina said businesses should prioritise evolution. “Brands must work at high speed to get ahead of AI this year, and see it as an elevator for unlocking human capability, not a threat to it,” she said.

​Momentum Worldwide’s challenge is not so much uncertainty as it is execution. Global chief client officer of the Omnicom-owned experience agency, Christine Shoaf, said the experiential sector is experiencing less volatility than other channels, but the question is how to scale it. “This means strengthening talent pipelines, operational discipline, partner relationships and developing more meaningful measurement frameworks.”

TBWA's Catherine said the frontrunners will cleverly juggle familiarity and novelty. "Anyone can take the crown from here on in. Everyone has everything to win. And everyone has everything to lose. So your only choice is to go for it."

And the two founders of Aussie indies -- Supermassive’s Laura and Today the Brave’s Jaimes -- believe the best agencies will be those that know why they exist. They will, as Laura said, “have the confidence to change course when they inevitably take a punch, or ten.” And they will be ruthless on vision but flexible about execution, Jaimes added.

“Clarity on the destination. Courage in the day-to-day. That’s how you move forward when everything is moving at once.”