Why Do Strategy Independently?

Where can leaders go to find the best way to achieve their goals when agencies are only interested in strategy if it supports their business model? This has made agency strategists salespeople first and foremost, truth-tellers a convenient second, and employees are strongly incentivized to support the HiPPO on any given subject. Why would someone offer leaders something “outside the box” when all the money and social acceptance is inside the box? I’ve lost count of the number of times where the most effective way to achieve a project’s goals has lain in a gray area beyond the services offered by an agency, and their client’s awareness of those options.

“But you just sell time” I hear you say. My mother was a hairdresser. She sold haircuts, but her value was self-esteem. We sell time, sure, but our value is the behavior we create and the ideas we use to create that behavior. Ad agencies sell commercials, but in an age where the celebrity is replacing the idea, their value is becoming production. So, when I say “the only thing we’re selling here is the truth” what I mean is, our only motivation is the most effective way of achieving your goals. Can your agencies, or even your employees say the same?