I've always loved the ACDs I've had to work with so this is a new problem. I flesh out a concept or write copy that I'm sure is great, but right before we present it to a client, my ACD tweaks everything to suit her style of presenting. I can't stand it one bit and it frustrates me to a point I can't explain... I'm super non-confrontational but I need to learn how to be. What can I say to her in a way that she stops doing this but doesn't ruin our working relationship?

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Levels exist for a reason. Your ACD is responsible for reviewing and refining the work, just as Creative Directors do when anyone we manage shares their work before a client presentation. It's important to remain objective. Ask yourself: does this feedback impact the quality of the work or your ego?

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Her job is to present and sell the work. There’s nothing wrong with her tweaking the work so it’s easier for her to accomplish that. It’s in your and everyone on the teams best interest that the work sells. I’d focus on changes you can make after it’s sold, in execution, that will get you back on track to your original vision. If her tweaks truly make the work worse, it ruins the idea, you can ask questions and talk about it. But go into that discussion assuming good intent.

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Like others have said, her job is to get the work to a point the client will buy it, and then help it get made - not simply pass it on to the client from you. If she needs to tweak it to help her sell it to a client she probably understands better than you do, then is that a problem?

Do you want an approved version of your idea, or do you want your version that doesn’t get approved? It’s not about you, or her. It’s about your entire team.

Also, you could try asking how to get your own presentation skills to the point you can sell your own work, the way you want to, in a client-palatable way.

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