The Art of Account Management: Celeste Toffanello on Building Empathy, Optimism and Trust
Hailing from the sunny shores of Australia, Celeste Toffanello has been an NYC implant for the past nine years. Having spent the beginnings of her career first in Brisbane, then in Sydney, Celeste cut her teeth on a number of integrated campaigns for a diverse portfolio of brands such as Virgin Airlines, NRMA (Insurance), Tourism Australia, eBay and Volvo.
Sporting an uncompromising ambition for 'bigger', Celeste ventured across the Pacific to pursue the advertising mecca of NYC. Since then, she's helped develop consumer engagement programs for Samsung, launched voice assistant software for Google, introduced New Jersey to the world of sports betting with William Hill, gave flight to Macy's 'Believe' Holiday campaign featuring a blue reindeer (red was apparently taken) and produced a documentary short featuring Giannis Antetokounmpo for WhatsApp.
A resident ‘butcher’ in the Quality Meats stable, Celeste brings fresh cuts in the form of account management, and crazy stories from “down under” to the growing team. She’s also probably one of the very few Aussies who doesn’t surf. Weird.
LBB> How did you first get involved in account management and what appealed to you about it?
Celeste> I actually stumbled onto it during my last semester of university. My original plan was to pursue a career in politics/public relations, but when I had to take advertising as a final subject to graduate it was one of those, “wait, I can do this for a career?” type moments.
Thankfully my professors were all about real world experience, and kept in close contact with local agencies. Thus I was very fortunate to have been given a proverbial door to kick open at BBDO as an account coordinator. 14 years later, I’m still kicking.
Account management (imho) is a ‘best of all the worlds’ type of career. You might be an ‘account person’, but you’re also a creative, a strategist, a producer, a data scientist, an entrepreneur in some cases. Essentially a doer and maker of all things without ever having to be an expert in all of them. You have the privilege of witnessing a single thought become a globally celebrated creative campaign that catapults a brand’s bottom line. That’s special, and it’s why I still love the discipline.
LBB> What is it about your personality, skills and experience that has made account management such a great fit?
Celeste> I think at its core it boils down to curiosity. I’m no therapist but I find human behaviour fascinating. I couldn’t draw a stick figure to save myself, but I love the craft of creating ads. Being curious is what brought me to New York City, and it’s led me down paths and created opportunities I never thought one could explore as an account person. Skills you can learn, experience comes with rolling your sleeves up and getting amongst the work.
But I think curiosity is the spark any great practitioner needs to make advertising a great fit (not just account management).
LBB> What piece of advice would you give to someone just starting their career in account management?
Celeste> Three things come to mind.
The first is - Lean in.
I know Sheryl Sandberg coined it before me (probably much more eloquently and in a slightly different context), but advertising is not a spectator sport. I’m a bit of a sports fan, so forgive the metaphors, but a career in account management requires you to play both sides of the football. You have to sit shoulder to shoulder with your clients and colleagues alike to better understand each other as humans, develop lasting partnerships, brilliant creative and business results.
So lean into the work, the relationships, the process, the failures, the triumphs, the ‘ah has!’ and all that exists in between.
You’ll find that simply by soaking up all that the environment offers, you’ll succeed.
The second is - Read the game.
Still on the sports metaphors here. Bear with me.
Context is everything in advertising, and especially in account management. Learning the broader ambitions of your clients, the business goals (or challenges) of brands and the categories in which they exist will always have you one step ahead. It allows you to see past subjective opinions or actions, and steer the work towards your collective goal. Never let the work just come to you. Be proactive with your thoughts, instincts and relationships.
By doing so, you become the quarterback your team (and clients) rely on.
The third is - Bring your authentic self.
Not to be confused with your best self. That’s table stakes.
Diversity of thought, of experience, of origins, is what makes advertising a fundamental catalyst for change. Not just in the context of brands, but as a means for solving real world problems. Many people outside of our industry do not believe that complex business problems can actually be solved by creativity, but they frequently are and go unnoticed. An idea can come from anywhere and by bringing your real, uncensored, authentic self to the work and your role, you make it better.
LBB> Thinking back to some of your most challenging experiences you’ve had in your career, what do you think tends to lie at the heart of the more tense or difficult client-agency relationships?
Celeste> Thinking back on my experiences the lowest common denominators are usually mistrust and a lack of transparency, on both sides. What makes it worse is the unwillingness to compromise or understand the position of the other party. The words, “I’m sorry” aren’t ones advertisers (in any role) find easy to say, and yet they can do so much to change the course of a relationship. There’s no need to be afraid to use them.
In that same breath there shouldn’t be a tolerance for poor behaviour because of how it correlates with the numbers on a P&L sheet. It’s a vicious cycle, if you let it be.
LBB> And what are the keys to building a productive and healthy relationship?
Celeste> Empathy. Optimism. Trust.
No shade on the ‘Iron Triangle’, but you can actually have all three of these (read: you need all three of them) to build great relationships. Empathy leads to understanding. Optimism fuels belief. Trust breeds confidence. The result is great, effective work. It also makes getting out of bed everyday a fun time. So does coffee, but I’m not sure we trust each other yet. We’re working through it.
LBB> What’s your view on disagreement and emotion - is there a place for it and if not, why not? If so, why - and what does productive disagreement look like?
Celeste> In the context of our industry, it’s a necessity. See above re: bring your authentic self. Admittedly it can also be the kryptonite to great work when left unchecked. The sweet spot (productive disagreement) lies in respecting the opinions of others and keeping your emotions focused on the context of the conflict (or challenge).
A problem shared is a problem halved.
Will it always result in group hugs and rainbows? Maybe not. But I know I’m a better person and practitioner from being in the trenches with colleagues and clients, as opposed to pointing fingers looking for a ‘who-dun-it’. Hasbro has a board game for that, it’s called Clue.
LBB> Historically, account management has been characterised as the mediator in an adversarial client and creative relationship - what do you make of that characterisation, is there any nugget of truth in that or is it wildly inaccurate?
Celeste> Historically we’ve been given many names. In truth I think account people wear many, many hats. Sure, we’re mediators. If you’d like to call it that. We’re also authors, innovators, guardians, consultants, counsellors, critics, collaborators and more.
We’re people who meticulously marry the business goals of a brand with the creative integrity of our agencies. If a client and creative relationship is adversarial, it rarely lies solely at the feet of an account person. But I bet my bottom dollar we’re a part of the force behind said client going from adversary to ally.
LBB> These days, agencies do so much beyond traditional campaigns and as account management you’re pulling together creative, experience, data, e-commerce, social and more - and that complexity can often be mirrored on the client stakeholder side too? What’s the key to navigating (and helping the client navigate) that complexity?
Celeste> Patience and prioritisation are two key themes that spring to mind. Simply reading this question could leave one's head spinning, but a great account person can zoom out of the complexity and rally a team (including a client) to achieve a common goal.
The world is inherently a thousand times busier and more nuanced than the days of Linotype and Madison Avenue. There will always be spinning plates, and no signs of slowing down. Knowing where to focus your energy and having the patience (and trust) in your team members to get the job done will always win out. As I said before, a problem shared…
LBB> What recent projects are you proudest of and why? What was challenging about these projects from an account management perspective and how did you address those challenges? What was so satisfying about working on these projects?
Celeste> To be perfectly candid, the most recent project I’m proudest of is the agency I’ve worked at for a little over a year now - Quality Meats.
This is the first time I’ve ever been at the ground level of a growth trajectory that sparked in the minds of two people who asked the question, “why does it have to be this way?” and then went about answering it without ever having the ego to suggest they’ve solved it.
As an account person, it’s equal parts thrilling and terrifying to step out of the safety of the ‘established’ and help build an agency whilst achieving success with your client partners. I’m learning things about myself, my team and my clients that make me better at my job and therefore produce better outcomes from the work we collectively put out into the world.
Is it complex? One hundred percent.
Are there disagreements and emotions? Always.
But wherever there are bumps in the road, there is always a hand out to help. Wherever there is chaos, there is also gratitude. Wherever there is success, it’s shared. It’s constantly evolving and limitless in its potential, and that’s just as satisfying as any piece of metal or campaign I could be a part of. My hope is that my fellow account peers one day get to do the same.
In whatever capacity they find the opportunity to do so.
