Score: 9
Last year: 7
How the agency rates itself: 9
Jason Dormieux delivered in his first year in sole charge of MEC after two years as co-chief executive. An excellent new-business record, including winning Nationwide and BMW, and a move into a new, state-of-the-art home in Sea Containers have given the agency a double fillip.
MEC regarded the office move as a "big bang moment" – an opportunity to reinvent every part of the business. It’s easier said than done but there was lots of change. Client teams were integrated so planners now sit next to data specialists and activation experts. The agency fostered further collaboration by turning a third of its office space into "partner zones" – shared areas where brands and media owners can visit and work with MEC staff.
The result was £250m in new billings during the year, according to MEC – although that was partly offset by the agency letting go of EE’s £60m account, which went to sister shop Maxus as part of a consolidation of BT’s spend. (MEC insists it should be classed as a retention because some of its staff moved across to Maxus to keep working on EE.)
Apart from the EE realignment, the two losses were Nintendo, which MEC resigned, and Visa Europe, which went to Starcom. But the agency successfully defended some important accounts, notably Transport for London and Beiersdorf – a tribute to MEC’s well-established senior team. They also have a reputation for nurturing young talent, and four staffers were named in Media Week’s 30 Under 30 last year.
MEC capped the year by being named ±±¾©Èü³µpk10’s Media Agency of the Year, underlining how the UK shop had outperformed the global network in 2016.
How the agency describes its year in a tweet
We worked hard, played hard and won big #Reinvention @MECUK
Score key: 9 Outstanding 8 Excellent 7 Good 6 Satisfactory 5 Adequate 4 Below average 3 Poor 2 A year to forget 1 Survival in question