From Ted.
Welcome to the October edition of Tech Brand Brief—brought to you by fred&ted—perhaps the only agency that can make your brand as innovative as your technology.Our theme this month: The Agency Reckoning. Because the agency world is in flux. Holding groups are chasing scale, reorganizing, and selling one-stop solutions. Independents are carving out wins by being faster, scrappier, and closer to the work. Enterprise CMOs are stuck at the crossroads: Do you want the weight of a network, or the agility of a specialist? The truth is, neither side has all the answers. What matters is fit—who can give you clarity, focus, and impact when it counts. This issue looks at how the new agency landscape is reshaping brand leadership in enterprise technology.
Metrics that matter.
Indies, holdcos, hybrids—it’s all in play. Marketers are switching, reviewing, and rebalancing like never before. Here’s what the agency reckoning looks like in a few stats.
of B2B firms will rely on a mix of in-house teams and external agencies by 2026, up from 36% in 2025.
—Sagefrog
of brand marketers were poised to drop their primary agency in 2024, a decline from 55% the year prior.
—MediaPost
of firms intended to reassess their agency relationships by late 2024, reflecting heightened scrutiny of agency value.
—MediaPost
10-K signals for brand leaders.
Want a peek into how enterprise tech giants are playing the game? Each month, we analyze 10-K filings from major players to reveal what they’re prioritizing in sales and marketing.
The Agency Reckoning: Omnicom says it organizes around client needs, using Omni/Annalect to coordinate precision marketing across networks.
Key Takeaway: Integration is the promise. But in the reckoning, CMOs will ask: Does a giant network actually move faster than a smaller, tighter team?
The Agency Reckoning: Meta’s filing notes restructuring and AI infra spend to drive efficiency and performance at scale.
Key Takeaway: Platforms thrive on self-serve efficiency. For CMOs, the question is: What can agencies add on top that machines and platforms won’t already do?
The Agency Reckoning: IPG’s “Open Architecture” model unites talent across agencies with data/AI platforms to deliver integrated solutions.
Key Takeaway: A flatter structure helps—but silos don’t vanish overnight. The reckoning isn’t about access to talent, it’s about whether access speeds results.
CMO voices.
Christine Le Maitre
Head of Marketing, iNova Pharmaceuticals
Le Maitre cuts to the heart of the agency reckoning: “The problem for marketers is that all agencies say they do everything, and I feel like that makes it really difficult for us to work out how and who to use.”
Generalist claims can create confusion, not clarity. Her point reflects what many enterprise CMOs feel—brands don’t always want or need one-size-fits-all promises, they need partners with true specialization who know exactly where they add value.
AI & brand.
Canva’s Magic AI features let small teams quickly produce graphics and social posts. Templates and generative text/image tools deliver professional results with no big design team needed.
Zapier’s AI turns “what if” into “done.” Connect tools, add smarts, and free your team from admin. The Agency Reckoning isn’t about size—it’s about speed.
From the indie network director’s desk.
The Agency Reckoning is about much more than holding company consolidation—it’s about choice. Then too, choice overload can be overwhelming. And that has never been more true than now, with the proliferation of indie agencies.
100%—the growth of indies is a very good thing for the quality of work. However, with an ever-expanding remit, and the limited bandwidth of much smaller teams, it can make it nearly impossible for clients to find the right partners.
So we have built our network to overcome two of the biggest hurdles for those who would prefer to work with indies. First, with literally thousands of agencies out there, how do you find the best ones across your core needs? And second, if you do find the right mix of shops to tackle your entire scope of work, how do you know they will actually work well together vs it being a land grab/fight for budget, scope and influence?
At Nostos, that is an integral part of our offering. All members are fully vetted, values-aligned and reference-checked independent marketing agencies, consultancies, studios and more. And all have chosen to collaborate with one another for the benefit of our collective clients. Across 50+ indie specialist shops, we provide a full 360 of marketing & tech expertise. Spanning every discipline, from far upstream innovation, business/brand strategy and insights to execution, and everything in-between.
Our goal is to provide clients across categories with simple and easy access to the smartest teams in each discipline. To solve 95% of their needs/scope of work. And all with experienced partners/senior teams engaged along the way.
We were actually a few years ahead of this major industry shift toward indies. With both a fully integrated offering, and the community we have fostered and cultivated.
Plus, we truly operate like a network, not a monolith. That means clients get breadth without bureaucracy, expertise without ego, and independence with collaboration. It’s proof that indie agencies don’t just survive the reckoning—we thrive in it by offering CMOs the agility and scale they actually need.
What’s making headlines in enterprise tech—and what brand leaders can take away from it.
A $13 billion mega-merger in the making. Omnicom’s move to absorb IPG signals an industry earthquake–agencies consolidating at an unprecedented scale. The agency world’s reckoning is officially underway.
When a Big Tech veteran takes the helm at the world’s largest ad firm, it’s not business as usual. WPP’s leadership swap reads like an admission–to survive the AI storm, agencies need tech DNA at the top.
In a dramatic self-reckoning, Dentsu is considering offloading its entire overseas arm. Years of expansion now under the microscope–proof that even global giants aren’t safe from the “adapt or die” mandate sweeping Adland.
What’s coming up.
November 10, 2025
London, UK
CMOs meet in London to tackle “What Matters Most”—including how to drive growth while agency models shift and marketing priorities collide.
November 12, 2025
London, UK
This flagship event challenges CMOs to act braver—perfect timing as marketers rethink how to disrupt old agency models and build faster brands.
December 10–11, 2025
New York, USA
AI + brand leadership collide in NYC. Learn how enterprise teams use AI to move faster—and what that means for agencies facing the reckoning.
fred&ted in the wild.
In the wild? Been there, still doing that. For us, The Agency Reckoning isn’t just a theme—it’s a lived experience. Our team has sat inside every model: holdcos, boutiques, startups, hybrids. Here’s the truth: No structure is perfect. What matters is alignment—every partner and discipline pulling from a single, durable brand idea, led by an “A” team, not a “D” team. Get that right, and any model can work. Get it wrong, and even the best roster won’t save you. This month’s fred&ted in the wild? Well, that’s decades in the making—and still unfolding.
From Fred.
Headlines love the drama of an “Agency Reckoning”—consolidations, in-housing, shiny new models. And sure, those shifts matter. But here’s the truth: None of it means a thing without brave creative ideas that actually move people. You can shuffle rosters, build internal teams, or sign up for the next big holding-co promise—but if the spark isn’t there, it’s just decks and buzzwords. The reckoning isn’t about who owns the budget; it’s about who has the courage to make work that cuts through. Because in the end, creativity is still the one thing your competitors can’t copy, automate, or outsource.Holdco or indie, in-house or hybrid—the labels don’t matter. The reckoning isn’t about who’s bigger or smaller, it’s about who’s braver. Models shift, but creativity and alignment are the only true differentiators.
© 2025 fred&ted. All rights reserved.
