Lord Saatchi, the Maurice Saatchi in the original Saatchi & Saatchi
and the 'M' in the five-year-old M&C Saatchi, is surprised that people
in advertising could possibly be unhappy.
When told that many agency people in Asia are discontented, unhappy with
their jobs, hate the clients, and think their lives are going nowhere,
Lord Saatchi almost goes into shock.
"Advertising should be a young person's first career choice," he told
MEDIA.
"I don't know another industry where a young person can get ahead so
early in life."
He should know. Maurice Saatchi was in his mid-20s when he and his
brother Charles founded Saatchi & Saatchi in 1970.
The agency became one of the most exciting brands in the world and a
social revolution in itself, with ads such as "The Pregnant Man", big TV
ideas for British Airways, credit for changing governments and a great
big dollop of cheekiness that made the whole thing a swashbuckling
adventure.
The Saatchis made buckets of money, then one day decided to diversify
slightly by buying the Midland Bank.
That probably marked the pinnacle, although it wasn't until 1994 when
Saatchi & Saatchi stockholders managed to sideline Maurice.
Lord Saatchi, however, was angered by the whole affair and declined
several showpony positions, preferring to break loose and set up a new
outfit, M&C Saatchi, which even now he refers to as a "happy
accident".
M&C Saatchi now has staff of 1,000 worldwide, 250 of them in Asia and
Australasia, and has been recording revenue growth worldwide of 100 per
cent every year from 1995 to the present.
Therefore Lord Saatchi is qualified to talk about how people should be
enjoying advertising rather than despising the fact that they are a part
of this misery.
"Advertising is extremely meritocratic. What matters is who has the idea
and the energy to make it happen," he said.
"You can be a very senior person in advertising in your late 20s. Other
industries are more hierarchical."
Lord Saatchi said anyone in advertising has the opportunity "to sit at
the knee of some of the cleverest businessmen in the world."
In fact, anyone who doesn't want to go into advertising is making a
mistake, according to Lord Saatchi.
So it's clear that advertising can indeed be full of opportunity, but
it's up to the individual to find fulfillment in the agency they choose
to work for.
When asked why there appeared to be so few agency start-ups in the
modern era, Lord Saatchi said people were confused about whether it was
viable to launch an agency in the age of globalisation.
"We had British Airways and Qantas as foundation clients," he said. "We
were very blessed."
M&C Saatchi is a happy ship, according to Lord Saatchi, because
"everyone is an owner".
"That must make a difference. It's possible to have a straightforward
conversation with someone in your own company without fear of causing
hurt or envy."
Lord Saatchi said business life can become a source of great stress and
tension and the disaffected ones are suffering from the "horrors of
anthill life".
He said this feeling was not just among ad agencies, but in the client
companies as well.
"The world has come to recognise that size and geographical spread is
vital. There is a tremendous drive for mergers, acquisitions and it's
all Darwinian. It's not going to be reversed."
Lord Saatchi said one of the most important and useful roles that
management can play is to help companies with the general issue of
morale.
"What is the point? What is it all about? People need to have an answer
to these questions and it's up to the top men in the company to provide
a clear answer.
"When people are happy, your company does well."
