Spencer Gallagher's Linkedin Analytics

So ... Busy, busy, busy....right now! I've been reminding a few clients and friends of late that we are now using the term "agency pace" in our business as a reminder to ourselves of the work pace we need to work at - to compete in tomorrow's market... I think like most businesses founders I've been speaking with of late, we are almost all back in start-up mode, working 7 days a week to embrace the changes and learnings that are happening to our businesses.... I certainly get more messages than ever here from founders over the weekend these days! Anyway. it’s one of those weeks that reminds me why I love doing what I do. 🤍💪🏻 Right now in my day job I'm... 👉 Helping two small agency groups acquire others to accelerate their both the acquiring agency and their growth 👉 Supporting three other agencies through the process of selling their business to support their and their team's futures. 👉 Starting work with two new founders preparing to sell 👉 Speaking Alliance of Independent Agencies in London this week (and Glasgow and Edinburgh in June / July on Agency Transformation to AI and Agency 3.0. 👉 I'm also now Non-exec'ing with Joanne Reid (AI) , Alfie Wenegieme FCCA (CFO) and Mark Sainthill (M&A) with a handful of brilliant agencies, guiding their AI transition and growth, with space for one or two more this year, if you are interested, shout! We've reshaped how we at Cactus support agencies as the landscape is evolving faster than even I thought it would! We’re now also helping agencies not just scale, buy and sell, but helping them understand about the impact that AI will have on their agency and how to actually implement change from mindset shifts, standalone tool adoption to full-scale productisation. And...well, at the very moment, I'm writing this I'm just about to leave for my new stunning 1h45 drive from my new home in Loch Fyne, past the Rest and be Thankful to Glasgow Airport for the flight down to London City.. for a week in London. So, as you know, i’ll be heading out to SXSW London this week to catching up with old friends, making new ones and hopefully learning a few new things too in the process, **find and connect to me on the SXSW app... So if you would like any support to create a successful outcomes for your agency over the next few years - get in touch today and learn more about how our wider team can support you and your team accross the board achieve your goals. Oh and...I've even dusted down my bag from last Austin last year.... 👌🏻 See you there! #sxsw #cactus #agencytransformation #mergers #growth #ai #nonexec

One thing's certain. The same agency services delivered the same way simply won’t cut it anymore. AI is already giving some businesses a chance to reposition. Not just by adding new tools, but by using this moment to sharpen their proposition, codify their IP, and build things that are genuinely ownable. Of course we all know, it's not just internal efficiency. It's about you, your team, your brand, and showing your expertise and experience in solving your customers' biggest challenges. I’ve seen agencies turn a niche capability into something bigger by wrapping the right language, product, and structure around it. That’s when doors start opening. Sure, not everyone’s there yet. A lot are still figuring out where they sit in all this. But the ones moving ahead aren’t waiting to have it all figured out. They’re building, shaping, testing, and being seen for it. Just be careful... "Working hard on your value prop is one thing, but if you're not actively showing how you’re solving real client problems in new ways, using new techniques and the solutions now available, you may find yourself lagging behind." I'm seeing too many people treating their value proposition like insulation, expecting it to magically generate leads just because it's well thought through.

Can the pace of change be just too fast, even for the best of us to keep up? Every business I know needs to shift back into start-up mode, right now. Up the pace... We are living through a wave of disruption that’s unlike anything I’ve seen before. GenAI isn’t just another tool—it’s a fundamental rewiring of how we work, how we think, how we operate. https://lnkd.in/esWfPka7 Adoption doesn’t happen just because the tech exists. It needs to land. To sink in. To be felt, played with, questioned. It needs time, and space and maybe some messiness along the way. We can’t just throw this stuff over the fence and expect transformation, can we? The challenge? The tech moves fast. But in my experience people don’t. We’ve got to hold both. Urgency and patience. Experimentation and empathy. That’s the real work imho..

Just listened to Demis Hassabis walk through the arc of DeepMind, AGI progress, and what comes next. It wasn’t hype. It wasn’t even panic. It was clarity. 👌🏻 What stood out most was how calm and composed his perspective is, despite being at the centre of one of the most disruptive forces of our time. He spoke about AGI not as an abstract ambition but as something 5–10 years away. Close enough to demand responsibility. Big enough to change everything. There was something reassuring in hearing a founder so rooted in science and long-term thinking. Someone who’s been working toward this moment for over 30 years not chasing headlines, but solving real problems. He framed AI not just as a productivity tool or commercial opportunity, but as a way to tackle some of the world’s biggest scientific barriers, from drug discovery to climate modelling. The idea of “science at digital speed” stuck with me. That’s the gear shift. That’s the frontier. It reminded me why this next chapter matters and why the right balance of ambition, ethics, and science-first thinking is so vital. If you get a chance to watch it, do. It’s one of the more grounded and future-facing talks I’ve seen in a while. 👏🏻👏🏻

“There are decades where nothing happens; and there are weeks where decades happen.” Vladimir Lenin This is me right now - credit to Karl Barker 🙏🏻🤍💪🏻

Everyone get on x now... Elon vs Trump 🫣

Most AI talks focus on automation and productivity. But what about creativity? This was how a talk i just listened to SXSW London by Henry Coutinho-Mason He reported... 77% of employees don’t feel more productive because of AI. Many feel less so. Yet the media fixates on “trillions in productivity gains.” What if that’s not the point? We’ve been experimenting with AI and creativity in a totally different way. At a renewable energy hackathon, teams submitted 9,000 solutions – not because AI did the work, but because it helped them get to an idea faster, iterate more deeply, and share it sooner. AI isn’t just about outputs. It’s about momentum. Creativity is often stuck behind fear: of being wrong, of being judged, of not being polished. AI lowers that bar. It gives people the confidence to share half-formed ideas that can be shaped by others. We’ve seen this in live sessions – crowdsourcing startup ideas for in 60 seconds, using AI to visualise doodles, critique them in a fake WhatsApp chat, and generate full business plans from scratch. It’s not about perfect prompts. It’s about freeing energy. So the real AI question for leaders isn’t: how do we automate more? It’s: how do we unlock crowd-powered creativity in our teams? #sxsw

Well this looks right up my street 🤍✨👌🏻🙏🏻 Who else is at South-by next week? Overdue catch up anyone?

M&A in agency land this year 👇🏻 Less sizzle, more substance. There’s no denying that 2024 into 2025 has marked a shift in how agency M&A is playing out. A few years ago, there was a lot of noise, fuelled by post-Covid bouncebacks, a rush of overcapitalised buyers, and some inflated valuations. Fast forward to this year, and while the volume of deals has cooled, the quality of conversations Cactus has improved dramatically. Here’s what we’re seeing: 👉🏻 Culture-first buyers are winning. Founders aren’t just looking for an exit, they’re looking for alignment. 92% of agency owners we surveyed said cultural fit is their top priority when selling. The best deals now aren’t always the highest offers. They’re the ones that preserve team spirit, client relationships, and a shared sense of ambition. 👉🏻 Growth by acquisition is replacing organic scaling. With new business pipelines tight and growth harder to come by, many agencies are opting to acquire capability, client base, or even geography. 69% of agency founders say they’re considering buying another agency. The appetite is there, but selectivity is high. 👉🏻 AI is subtly reshaping buyer criteria. While no one’s buying an agency purely for its tech, buyers are increasingly looking at operational readiness for AI. Can the agency scale without bloating headcount? Can they automate intelligently? These are now real considerations at the deal table. 👉🏻 Fewer tyre-kickers, more serious intent. Gone are the days of speculative offers and half-baked buyer approaches. If a deal is on the table now, it tends to come from a group with a clear strategic fit, often backed by private equity, or global networks looking to future-proof themselves. 👉🏻 Founders are planning earlier and better. So, this year, we’ve seen a rise in founders seeking exit planning advice years in advance, mapping value drivers, aligning leadership, and setting milestones. The aim isn’t just a better valuation, it’s about control and confidence over the next chapter. If you’re in agency land and M&A is on your radar, whether it’s 12 months out or 5 years away, the biggest lever isn’t your numbers. It’s clarity. Clarity on what you want, who you’ll trust to carry it forward, and how you want the story to unfold. As ever, it’s more than just a transaction #agencytransformation #nxd

Firstly - you may already know, but I recently made the move to Scotland - and I've finally settled in! To everyone who i spoke to during my move up, I promised i would host a little drinks event and so with my good friend Don Smith and colleague Mark Sainthill we are going to now host a mini event about the next and future value for agencies...(more details below) Moving forward, I'm also going to be spending more time monthly in Edinburgh, Glasgow, as well as my now regular trips to London, Bristol, Manchester working with Cactus clients. News of our official Scottish office 🏴󠁧󠁢󠁳󠁣󠁴󠁿to follow soon too! So more about these agency founder (and friends) events 🏴󠁧󠁢󠁳󠁣󠁴󠁿... 👇🏻 These events will be a relaxed chance to connect, catch up, and share some key industry insights I’ve gathered through my work with agencies navigating their journey into AI and beyond. I’ll be sharing a short talk on Agency 3.0 - a framework for how forward-thinking agencies are transitioning and staying competitive in the AI era. Also joining me will be: Don Smith @OneHundredFlowers – a good friend and familiar face to many of you, sharing tools and products that innovative agencies are using to stay ahead. Mark Sainthill Head of M&A Cactus who will share a quick dive into what buyers are currently looking for, market trends, and where future agency value lies. Where & When... Glasgow – Wednesday 30th July, 5–7ish pm The Social Hub https://lnkd.in/eR5SVFSP Edinburgh – Thursday 17th July, 5–7ish pm The Bothy at Brewhemia Book https://lnkd.in/exGYbu-J If you can make either evening, it would be brilliant to see you there. I’m also arranging some visits / talks to wider agency teams / offices directly - just drop Abbe (acw@cact.us) an email and she can help coordinate. Come join and say 👋🏻

“Sales needs a bionic upgrade” said Linda Lian at SXSW London this afternoon One of the most insightful talks I sat in today came from Linda Lian, founder and CEO of Common Room. She laid out, with clarity and urgency, how most go-to-market teams are still operating like it’s 1999 using outdated tools and processes to understand customers in a world that’s completely changed. The message was clear: the buying journey has moved on. People do their own research. They engage with brands across dozens of fragmented digital channels. They expect you to know who they are before they ever speak to a sales rep. Common Room is solving for that. They unify all those digital signals, from website visits to community engagement and layer AI over it to tell sales teams who to reach, when, and why. Not someday. Now. What stood out was how grounded Linda was in the reality of enterprise sales. She wasn’t selling a silver bullet. She was explaining how to take what’s already there, the data, the interest, the intentand finally make it useful. There were two takeaways I’ll keep: 1. AI doesn’t replace the human in sales. It removes the admin, the guesswork, the hours of account research, so reps can actually build trust and relationships. 2. Adoption isn’t about tech, it’s about readiness. The hard part isn’t AI , it’s whether your team has their data connected, enriched and usable. Most don’t. It was a smart, sharp talk. Worth catching Linda Lian's writing on LinkedIn if you’re in B2B sales or marketing... The future is going to belong to teams that know how to orchestrate AI and people, not just bolt it on. #sxswlondon

500 mile commute ✅ Who else picking their SXSW ticket up tonight? Reminder 👉🏻Add me on the SXSW London app 🙏🏻 We also have an invite only Cactus SXSW London whatsapp group - let me know if you want adding.... Share what "talks" you aim to get to on Monday....

Agency transformation is inevitable. It's my professional opinion that every business should be pivoting from their now to their next and future right now. Joanne Reid and I are delighted to be hosting this Cactus talk tomorrow.

A question that came up while chatting to a friend on the way to SXSW London yesterday morning... Do agency people actually have “high agency”? We concluded that to thrive in this next cycle, agencies might need to be the ones full of high-agency people. Because the agencies that succeed won’t just be the ones with the best talent or the deepest specialisms. High-agency individuals don’t wait for instructions. They don’t see their role as a static job description. They don’t ask for permission to learn. They spot gaps. Solve problems. Reinvent themselves evolving moving forwards.... It’s simply not going to be enough to master a skill and coast for a decade anymore. That model’s gone. We’ve moved from a steady, maturing market to one moving at breakneck speed. So what do we actually need? People who are adaptive and proactive. Not just a growth mindset. But the hunger to own their learning. There’s a big difference between saying... “I can learn anything” and actually learning something new every week without being asked. This is the lens we need to hire through. To train through. To build partnerships through. High agency isn’t a bonus anymore. It’s the baseline. So ask yourself: Do your agency people have high agency? And more importantly...... How do we create and inspire a culture that unlocks our talent?

Less talks for me today SXSW London, I didn't time the queues very well...😂 Met the wonderful Jody Osman, talked all things agency & tech marketing, new business...and PR - if you don't know Jody connect and say hi 👋🏻 Then off to meet the super impressive Joel Silverman with Mark Sainthill at my new fav coffee shop in London "Nagare". ☕️ to talk global growth! Just love the energy and the great work they are doing at KidsKnowBest - check them out! Left and walked past Amazon Salon - see pic 🤷‍♂️wtf - can anyone explain? Then I got to catch up with today's "ultra high-agency superstars" Joanne Reid, Jayesh Rajdev and Tarek Nseir Managed to sing a quick Happy Birthday to Anita Rajdev 🍾🥂 Oh i couldn't miss the chance to get a celebrity snap in with Nas Majeed from Love Island 😂 👇🏻 Jayesh and I found time to speak on the talk we heard about AlphaFold yesterday acknowleging it's important to understand the wider impact AI is having for good beyond agency and media life... So cracked protein folding, a challenge that used to take years. 🤷‍♂️ Now it’s days. It’s being used by over 2.5 million researchers and is speeding up drug discovery by a factor of ten!!!! 🚀 Quietly, AI is starting to outperform humans in areas that genuinely save lives. Oh and then it was off to Shoreditch House to catch up with best agency CFO in the market - Alfie Wenegieme FCCA the best corporate finance person in the market Mark Sainthill met to talk the future of finance & m&a for agencies and AI! Exciting times ahead! #AI #HealthTech #NHS #DeepTech #AlphaFold #FutureOfScience #loveisland 😂

Everyone running a business this 👇🏻

“If intelligence is artificial, imagination is the fuel.” That line from Manon Dave has been stuck in my head since his lunch-time talk at SXSW London. It wasn’t the usual AI session full of charts and forecasts. It was beautifully creative, deeply human. And it made a better case for AI than most polished keynotes ever do. He spoke about jumping between worlds he had no formal right to be in, music production, refugee education, vehicle tech. Not because he was qualified. Because tech gave him the spark to start. The edge to try. One example: using AI to map vehicle data into musical notes, turning your driving into a live soundtrack. Another: building a learning toy for refugee children, powered by storytelling, sensors, and AI. What struck me was how he framed it all. Not as disruption. But as permission. Permission to imagine something better. To move fast, with just an idea. To not wait for perfection or a job title. It made me realise that the most exciting thing about AI isn’t what it automates. It’s what it unlocks, especially for the people who wouldn’t normally get a seat at the table. Manon Dave didn’t give a talk about AI tools. He gave a talk about imagination. IMHO that’s exactly what the conversation needs to more about right now.

This morning is a time for me to be eternally grateful. 🙏🏻✨🤍 Over the past many years, I’ve been fortunate enough to surround myself with some incredible colleagues and team mates. Abbe Wheeler is one of these people who i've been lucky to have, by my side. Abbe has been there for me on the best of days and the darkest of days of running a business. And yes, whatever everyone thinks like every business owner in the whole world - I have had to deal with tests from both sides. I also get the bonus of supporting many other agencies with their tests on both sides too 💪🏻 Sure, when someone’s related to you in a business, there’s no question they have to work twice as hard to prove they’re not there through nepotism. But that doesn’t mean most family memebers that work in a businesss work out, family members or partners in business often have to work harder as they feel that should have to to earn their place.... . I work hard, but Abbe works even harder. Work ethic is clearly something we need to blame our parents for 😂 Abbe (all those crazy paper rounds when we were younger) starting work at a young age. Abbe's commitment isn’t to me. It’s to the company through and through... She cares almost more than anyone about the "best interests" of the business. She lives the value and exists for the team. She’s been my rock through so many years of this business, and continues to show up each and every day. Abbe, I talk about you every day, with friends, partners, colleagues, and more importantly, our customers - oh and yes's like no other, they talk about you back! I’ve never met anyone so appreciated by others - and appreciated more than by me. I’m proud to be your colleague as much as i am your big brother. And even prouder to have you as part of our wider team Cactus. i'm dedicating this post and terrible photo of us both to you this morning - if you have a partner or sibling that simply your business wouldn't be the same without tag their name. 👇🏻 🤍🙏🏻🥲✨

You’re not building a business. You’re building yourself. For every new client win, every revenue high, every time you hire someone brilliant, there’s another side. Tough conversations. Missed targets. Cash flow crunches. people that didn’t work out. These aren’t just business lessons. They’re often personal ones that hit hard. And when things went wrong, I could point to the economy, the market, other people. But the bit that usually needed fixing? It was down to me. Taking responsibility. Learning the lessons. Doing what I could to make sure it didn’t happen again. Scaling any business is brutal at one point or another. But it’s also the best mirror you’ll ever look into. If you’re in that messy middle, remember don’t stop learning. The business grows as fast as you do. That’s for sure. Here’s to another week of personal development and new lessons learnt for us all. Bring it on!

in 1999 Most agency people (and many clients) "internet won't impact me, it won't change our approach to creativity design, marketing, advertising, pr" "all these internet people are overhyping 🙄 the change that is coming...and the reality of what can actually be done today. Where are the use cases?" (I remember a large high street retailer and a plc asking me the use cases when Google first launched ppc and it was 5p a click to be top 😂) It's a time to test new solutions and new approaches..... Sure they won't all work, some will just create better education, and some may even just work and create breakthrough solving new solutions that create next generation services... I want to pay respect to my team, who after a team meeting in 2024, have all of their own back gone on a journey and invested their own time in learning about the changes AI will bring to their agencies clients and the consulting world. no one is saying tomorrow is today 100% yet - i'm not it's gonna take a good 5 to 6 years in my opinion to evolve to the next generation agency 3.0. But, a future facing team with a growth mindset is all you need to stay ahead of the demand curve and keep relevent. Would you rather work with people that see and understand where and how the world is transitioning. or those who are naysayers, skeptics. doubters who won't invest in themselves because they believe that over next 10 years the world won't change for them, their agency or their clients? because between 2009-2012, let me tell you what happened to those who said the internet was a fad in 2001. They were all made redundant. Inspire your team to be better and teams invest in your future today...