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Emerlane Research: The Business of Culture I 2026 I Download Now
Why and How BBH's Culture Had to Evolve
I DEEP DIVE INSIDER PROFILES
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BBH looked at its own data and realized its traditional structure was producing worse work. So they rebuilt it. We sat down with the creative agency to understand why they dismantled the old way of working where each department hands work to the next and how they rebuilt it so everyone works together from the start. Here's what we learned about the data that forced the decision, the systems they created to make it work, and whether it's actually producing better results.
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What emerged is a case study in organizational reinvention, part structural overhaul, part mindset shift, and part experiment in what happens when you stop treating creativity like an assembly line.
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No more strategy writing briefs for creative, who then pass finished work to production. Strategists now sketch concepts. Designers reshape briefs. Producers weigh in from day one. The question is whether this actually works or just sounds good.
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"We got tired of brilliant strategies dying in execution and amazing creative that solved the wrong problem," says Sarah, Executive Creative Director. "So we blew up the assembly line. Now everyone builds together from the start."
They call it Borderless Teams. The concept is simple: the strongest ideas emerge when disciplines work together from the start. The execution is harder. Getting strategists, creatives, and producers to genuinely collaborate rather than just sit in the same room requires actual systems.
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Alex, BBH's Chief Strategy Officer, frames it as a response to market pressure. "Client needs have fundamentally changed. They want solutions, not just campaigns. Their challenges cross channels, merge online and offline, and demand faster responses than the old process could provide. Our culture had to evolve because the world already had."
BBH had proof this mattered. They looked back at their own projects and found a clear pattern. The most successful work came from teams that had naturally blurred departmental boundaries. Sequential projects took longer, needed more revisions, and produced less ambitious ideas.
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"We had the data to prove cross-functional collaboration was essential, not optional," notes Rebecca from operations. "When we compared client feedback to our internal processes, the pattern was clear. Our structure needed to reflect how creative problems actually get solved."
So they built Creative Confluence, a framework that channels messy collaboration into structured sessions. Question patterns and role rotation prevent turf wars while keeping the productive tension that generates ideas. Without this structure, borderless teams can devolve into chaos. Too much structure kills creative friction. Creative Confluence aims for the middle.
Marcus, a strategist who joined in 2023, was skeptical. "I worried my input would get watered down or ignored. But the opposite happened. My insights actually shape the work because I'm in the process, not just writing a brief and hoping it lands."
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Teams now form, adapt, and dissolve around client challenges instead of living inside fixed departments. BBH calls this Creative Ecosystems. Leadership rotates based on the phase of work rather than defaulting to seniority. Project needs determine how teams come together, who leads, and when roles shift.
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The theory shows up in specific practices. Take "10/10/10." Teams spend 10 minutes thinking individually, 10 minutes exploring in pairs, 10 minutes synthesizing as a group before starting work. Jamie, a designer, says it works: "Several campaigns began as initial thoughts during these sessions. It creates balance between independent thinking and group input." Then there's "Reverse Perspective." A weekly exercise where people step into roles outside their expertise. Art directors handle account work. Strategists tackle design. Production specialists develop concepts.
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Rahul, Head of Strategy, explains the logic: "When I think from a designer's viewpoint, I better understand their challenges. It's made our teams more collaborative and helped prevent departments from becoming isolated."
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The workspace got reorganized into "Context Zones." Spaces designed for specific types of work rather than departments. Collaboration areas. Quiet zones. Client spaces. Leila, a copywriter, uses them strategically: "When writing headlines requires concentration, I use the quiet spaces. For collaborative work, there are areas designed for group thinking."
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Information changed too. Since 2023, BBH has practiced "Open Access Information." Making most company data, client communications, and decision processes visible organization-wide.
Carlos, who joined client services last year, found this surprising: "At previous agencies, information was more guarded, especially financial details and client discussions. Here, I can see project performance metrics and access notes from leadership meetings."
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They also run "Failure Forums." Regular sessions where teams dissect projects that missed the mark. Not to assign blame but to identify what went wrong and how to prevent it next time.
Zoe, an art director, describes a recent one: "We discussed a campaign that missed the client's expectations. Instead of assigning blame, we identified the communication issues together and developed specific ways to prevent similar problems."
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To keep information accessible without overwhelming people, BBH uses "Mosaic." An internal platform that organizes project information, client communications, and team notes in searchable format.
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Devon, a junior strategist, uses it to learn: "I can see how experienced strategists approach challenges, review how creative concepts evolved, and understand how production brought ideas to life. It's accelerated my professional development."
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The model works because it matches how creative problems actually get solved. Not through sequential perfection but through messy iteration where disciplines collide early. When strategists sketch and designers rewrite briefs, ideas hold up through execution because everyone who has to build it helped shape it from the beginning. Whether other agencies can replicate this without BBH's specific culture and resources remains to be seen. But the data suggests it's worth trying.
BBH takes a different approach to career growth than most agencies. Rather than climbing a departmental ladder, they've implemented "Skill Constellations" – a framework that recognizes expertise across multiple areas. "The Skill Constellation approach gives me more options," shares Olivia, who has been with BBH for three years. "Instead of feeling there's only one path forward, I can develop my conceptual skills while also building client relationship abilities and trend forecasting knowledge." This system uses quarterly "Trajectory Dialogues" where team members map their evolving skills and identify development areas with guidance from mentors outside their immediate teams. The process uses an assessment tool measuring creative output alongside collaboration effectiveness, learning ability, and implementation skills.
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"Trajectory Dialogues make career development more transparent," explains Jason, a producer. "At previous agencies, advancement sometimes felt unclear. Here, I have visibility into what skills will help me grow, and there are multiple paths to increase my impact and compensation."
This development approach connects to project staffing through a system called "Optimal Assembly" that creates teams based on complementary skills rather than departmental representation, considering both current expertise and growth goals. "Optimal Assembly means I work with people who bring different perspectives," notes Priya, an experience designer. "The system pairs me with colleagues who have complementary approaches rather than similar backgrounds. It creates productive friction that usually strengthens the work."
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BBH's cultural changes since early 2024 have shown positive business results. Client retention has improved by 37% year-over-year, while average project scope has grown by 28% as existing clients expand their work with the agency. "Our cultural metrics connect to business outcomes," explains Jordan from the operations team. "When collaboration scores improve, we typically see corresponding increases in client satisfaction and project profitability. The culture investments are paying off in measurable ways."
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These changes have also affected talent, with employee turnover decreasing 42% since implementing these approaches. The agency has also attracted more diverse talent across backgrounds and disciplines. "Our culture has appealed to people who might not have considered agency work before," shares Elena from talent development. "We're seeing interest from candidates with technology backgrounds, management consulting experience, and other fields that bring fresh thinking to creative problems."
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Despite the positive changes, BBH's cultural evolution has faced challenges. The agency acknowledges periods of adjustment during the transition and continues refining their approaches. "The initial months of our new structure had some confusing moments," admits Thomas, a creative director. "We changed familiar processes while still developing new systems. Some projects stalled because responsibilities weren't always clear. Working through those difficulties together actually helped build commitment to the new approach."
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The agency now incorporates structured feedback through quarterly "Evolution Sessions" where team members evaluate what's working well and what needs adjustment. "Being open about what's not perfect yet creates trust," notes Amara, who joined six months ago. "Leaders acknowledge when initiatives aren't fully succeeding. We regularly discuss areas for improvement and work together on solutions."
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This comfort with being a work-in-progress extends to client relationships, with BBH developing a "Transparent Partnership" approach that involves clients in their evolution. "We've included clients in some of our Evolution Sessions," explains Martin from client services. "Letting them see how we're refining our approaches has actually strengthened relationships. Many appreciate being part of the process rather than just receiving finished work." As BBH continues developing their culture throughout 2025, the agency demonstrates that creative effectiveness comes from ongoing adaptation – a philosophy that influences both their client work and organizational approach as they navigate the changing agency landscape.
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