In this week’s episode of Adspeak by ADWEEK, government editor Alison Weissbrot leads a Brandweek panel that includes Nadja Bellan-White, group CEO at M&C Saatchi; Coltrane Curtis, founder and managing companion at Team Epiphany; and Kern Schireson, chairman and CEO at Known.
Together, they talk about the necessity to redefine agency-client partnerships. As budgets tighten and AI reshapes workflows, they clarify why legacy and fee-based fashions are not viable.
Instead, success hinges on empathy, belief, and aligned incentives tied to outcomes. The panel shares sensible methods, from embedding test-and-learn budgets to understanding board-level pressures and deploying agile “tiger teams.”
They emphasize deeper specialization, actual human connection, and shared accountability as the inspiration for resilient, high-performing partnerships in a quickly evolving advertising and marketing panorama.
What you’ll be taught:
- How to shift from legacy fee-based fashions to incentive-aligned partnerships
- Why understanding your consumer’s board-level KPIs is non-negotiable
- The “Three Ideas Framework” for managing threat and constructing belief
- How to construct real relationships by way of human connection and empathy
- Why company experience depth issues greater than breadth
- How to stability inside restructuring and crew safety with consumer excellence
Nadja Bellan-White is the Group CEO at M&C Saatchi, and a “human-first” advertising and marketing chief generally known as a go-to fixer for advanced model transformations. With 25+ years in built-in advertising and marketing, she blends knowledge, creativity, know-how, and media to drive significant buyer connections. She has led transformations for international manufacturers together with American Express, IKEA, and Coca-Cola, and partnered with African governments to spur development. An AdColor Legend Award recipient, she brings a pointy deal with context, tradition, and creativity to each engagement.
Coltrane Curtis is the Founder and Managing Partner of Team Epiphany, a New York-based influencer advertising and marketing and PR company he launched in 2004. What started as a one-man store has grown right into a 70+ individual, multidisciplinary company with places of work in New York and Portland. With roots at MTV and deep expertise throughout manufacturers like Nike, HBO, and Coca-Cola, Curtis blends cultural fluency with sharp strategic execution. Known for constructing highly effective model and celeb partnerships, he has been acknowledged by Inc., Forbes, Adweek, and AdColor, and serves on the American Black Film Festival board.
Kern Schireson is the CEO of Known, a next-generation company constructed on data-driven technique and systemic innovation. With deep experience in incentive alignment and AI-powered optimization, he’s serving to redefine the trendy company mannequin. Kern champions utilizing know-how as a power multiplier for enhancing, not changing, human creativity, whereas embedding rigorous test-and-learn frameworks into consumer partnerships. His strategy focuses on aligning incentives and enabling steady iteration, driving measurable, breakthrough outcomes for manufacturers navigating an more and more advanced advertising and marketing panorama.