Avoiding AI Traps and Anxiety with TBWA\Chiat\Day NY’s New CSO
For British strategist Tom Sussman, making his way to the USA has been a dream since childhood. And in June, that dream came true, with a move to the Big Apple to become chief strategy officer at TBWA\Chiat\Day New York.
Tom was most recently deputy chief strategy officer at Leo Burnett UK, the agency where his planning journey started over 15 years ago. Between those stints, he also spent seven years at adam&eveDDB, serving as strategy director and planning partner at the agency’s London office.
Now, Tom is on the road to disruption, taking the trip across the Atlantic to “unlock the magic” for an agency he says, “deserves it all”. Speaking with LBB, he discusses his plans for this new role, lessons from his time leading strategy for McDonald’s, and how to avoid the “landmines of obsolescence” posed by AI.
LBB> Congratulations on the new role! Why did you want to make the jump across the Atlantic, and to TBWA\Chiat\Day NY?
Tom> Living and working in the USA has been a dream ever since I first visited, aged seven. I was there to see my grandfather.
Through a child’s eyes, this 73-year-old cut an almost mythical figure; all twinkly eyes, baseball caps, and excessive splashes of Paco Rabanne. Combined with the movies, the music, the candy, and the sports, it was pure magic from day one.
American culture got its hooks in me and, despite the passing decades and many subsequent trips, it never really let go.
Then, when it comes to agencies that have successfully put creative advertising right at the heart of this culture that I’ve loved for so long, the legend of Chiat\Day looms above them all.
LBB> What are some of your short term goals for this new job? What do you hope to achieve by the end of the year?
Tom> In the very short term, my ambitions are simple: To listen and learn.
I want to listen to our people, our clients, and our partners. And I want to learn all about how they’re feeling, their ambitions, beliefs, sticking points and frustrations.
Chiat\Day NY is clearly already a world-class team, so if we can just figure out what its people need and unlock the magic of its partnerships, there’ll be no stopping us.
LBB> You've previously helped lead strategy at adam&eve and Leo Burnett in London -are some moments or teachings from others that prepared you for this CSO role?
Tom> When I reflect on the planning leaders who have resonated with me most - Golding, Beverley, Harrison, Lovell, Bullmore (it’s a long list) - they’ve all embodied the same basic wisdom.
- The work is what matters. It’s nice to be told you have a killer strategy, but the real point is to create killer work. If that is embraced as the one true yardstick, it gives everyone and everything the right focus.
- The gang is the key. There’s no problem a gang of brilliant people in a room cannot solve. And from the minute I met Emily [Wilcox, CEO at TBWA\Chiat\Day NY] and Dustin [CCO at TBWA\Chiat\Day NY] it was clear I’d found a room I wanted to be in.
- The simpler the better. Life’s already complicated enough, without the ad agency adding to the confusion. So take the pressure off and remember: simple beats clever every single day of the week.
LBB> You saw immense success with your work on the McDonald's account at Leo Burnett - 'Raise Your Arches' being a particular standout. How has planning for one of the world's biggest brands shaped the approach you're bringing to TBWA?
Tom> Leading strategy for McDonald’s was an extraordinary privilege, and every day was a school day.
Most of all though, it emphatically reinforced one key lesson: if you want to make great work, get to know your customer. Know what they’re going through. Know how they feel. Know what they love about your brand (and what they love less). Know what they’re into, not into and could be into. Know what they haven’t seen yet - what might surprise them, make them smile or get them on the dance floor.
Because, whilst our industry’s changing fast, there’s still nothing that beats a truly great idea dripping with customer understanding. Nothing.
LBB> What do you see as the main challenges you and the agency will face from a strategic point of view in the next year or so?
Tom> There is no doubt, AI is going to transform our industry.
The swirl of anxiety and confusion is already palpable. But whilst we lean in and fastidiously attempt to avoid the landmines of obsolescence, missed opportunity, or even just seeming stupid, I suspect it could be all too easy to fall into another trap proposed by artificial intelligence: forgetting the value of human intelligence.
So, as well as embracing all the brilliant new tools and processes we now have at our disposal, I’ll also be doing my best to help us keep things simple. And, as boneheaded as it might sound, that means keeping close to our customers, keeping tight as a gang, and keeping focused on what really matters: the work.
LBB> What are your main long-term ambitions for yourself and the agency? How do you want your tenure as CSO to be defined?
Tom> I haven’t even started yet!
But I do know Chiat\Day NY deserves it all. The agency deserves to be talked about - to be notorious for its sheer ambition and disruptive creativity. To be ‘that gang’.
If you listen closely, you can already hear that noise starting to grow around 42nd Street. I can’t wait to join in!
