Got a new CCO. They’re kind, but obsessed with awards. EVERY project is interjected with “What’s the case study for this?”

Honestly, I’m sick of it. This pursuit feels more like a vanity thing for my CCO than it being truly additive for our agency.

I was taught early in my career to prioritize making great work, not awards.

How are awards supposed to be top of mind when layoffs are constant, the threat of AI looms, and we’re all just trying to survive?

Am I wrong for feeling this way?

I had a CD who came in with that energy and at first I was like eye roll. But then I ended up loving that thinking because a good case study gets at the core of the campaign and makes you come up with a why should people give a shit/what’s the clever angle/ whats the human insight/ what’s the problem/ or how did we stand apart from other campaigns and competitors. Sure you can make a film that looks nice and you put in your book but it might die there unless you give the film a “why”

You may be sick of it right now, but if you end up with a bunch of award winning work in your book, you’ll be glad you had someone pushing for it when you’re looking for your next gig.

Use their “what’s the case study for this?” mindset to your advantage. I won’t go as far as to say that you should think in case studies, but maybe you can more intentional about thinking FOR case studies to package your work in a way that’s more palatable for them.

I may be stating the obvious, but don’t get overwhelmed with the words “case study.” Think of it more like, what is the press headline or what’s the opening line of the video. Like the elevator pitch. That’s all they mean. What’s that one sentence. The case study will come later, when you achieve that one line.

Argentinian or Brazilian?

Thinking in terms of "what's the case study" is a good way of checking that you're framing the work (and therefore creating the work) in the most impactful way.

Sounds like they’re encouraging creatives to think more about the end result. Worked well for CP+B in their heyday when they would present ideas to clients in the form of a press release or news article about the idea. It’s a way to reframe the takeaway. And while it might feel like award chasing, it can also make it a lot easier for clients to buy into the craziest ideas. I wouldn’t rush to poopoo this. Give it a chance and you might just have some fun

I think I’ve worked for this guy

As someone who’s come in to an agency with similar energy, my 2 cents:

- “Award winning” ultimately is a short hand for “let’s really push the work as far as we can” in a way that has the incentive for you built in (good for the book, shiny trophies, payrise/promotion, even job security).

- It’s also a somewhat tangible objective that everyone involved (agency and sometimes client side) understands. “Great work” is totally subjective, whereas there’s at least some sense of “best in class” when you frame it as award worthy.

- Similarly, it’s easier to get the whole team on board and not just the creatives. “Come up with a great idea” puts onus on one department, while “award-winning” requires pushing from everyone to get it over the line etc.

- As others have mentioned, it requires more strategic rigour. Why this? Why now? Why them? What’s the story that sells the idea? How are we going to measure success? It’s not just for a case study in the end, it’s for the initial pitching.

- Bonus, I think it’s important for creatives to see/understand how the sausage gets made. Acting like it’s a meritocracy or magic that only senior bods get to whip up is wrong. I try to find the balance of being pragmatic/cynical about the whole thing…while holding onto the fun/excitement.

It’s outdated thinking. But everyone working in this industry has been programmed to think it’s a good thing. Awards don’t matter. The work rarely helps clients, and even when it does, there’s no guarantee it will help keep the business.

In my opinion that can be boiled down to one very sinple thing. What’s the best angle to tell the story of the campaign. There are 1000 ways you can contextualise your work.

Often that reveals a bigger idea above everything you have been doing that can make even the work you already made feel way mode interesting.

Ask your CFO how much the award submission budget is for the year, what your CCO’s bonus structure and compensation model is for winning awards, and what your (and the creative department in general) financial incentives are for winning certain awards.

I wish I had a CCO like this

What drew you to that agency to begin with? Was it the quality of work? Was it the fact that you read about that agencies work in the publications? Making sure the work gets high profile. Visibility has everything to do with recruiting as it does for your own benefit.

Well... That's how you build a campaign for award if you want to win. I know a lot of agency build their case as an after thought but if you want to showcase STRONG work, you should build your campaign & case study in parallele. Now I understand that you maybe don't care about award, and its completly fair, but if the CCO focuses on that, it means they probably have KPIs for the next year, and so that their role is linked to that success. So I don't think its gonna go away.

Case studies are a huge lift when pitching. So if you want work to keep coming, they are good to have on hand, and tagged by things that help you ll them when asked “do we have anything for XYZ?”

I understand your point of view and I even share some of it. Obsessions with awards can hurt actual good and relevant work, but I will offer some perspective (despite my outdated title tag here I'm an ECD).

It's very possible your CCO was hired for that and are pressured by his bosses to deliver. Holding companies, despite going on record saying that awards don't pay bills, often pressure the CSuite for award results. For proof of that just look at the award submissions, they grow each year. Our clients ask for that. Every CMO wants to become Fer Machado now. If you are being pressured to win awards he might also be and maybe it isn't just "vanity".

You can take advantage of this and make something that can win awards. Awards don't make you layoff-proof (I was let go a day after winning a lion once), but it certainly puts you in front of a lot of people if it happens to you.

Also, if that's what your boss wants, that's your job. You don't have to like it, despite this millennial notion that you have to love your work. I don't like every aspect of my job. Working sucks.

Is this CCO an older Brazilan woman by any chance???

CCOs are judged by awards. They don’t have anything else to measure their success besides awards and new business. If they aren’t the outgoing new business types they have to hang on to awards. Usually you’re one type or the other. There’s no in between.
But being on their good side is good for your career in the agency so yes, figure out what the case study is. What’s the strong insight, idea, and desired results? Even if you’re not doing it to win awards you should be able to answer these questions.