Stage 1
Assess
A comprehensive 4–6 week assessment mapping every agency's operational reality against the eight stages of the campaign lifecycle.
The Eight Stages of the Campaign Lifecycle
The assessment maps performance across every stage of how marketing work actually gets done.
Brand Strategy & Planning
Consumer Research & Insight
Integrated Campaign Planning
Channel Strategy
Creative Strategy & Ideation
Content & Asset Development
Media, Social & Commerce Activation
Measurement, Reporting & Optimisation
Five Assessment Dimensions
At each lifecycle stage, we assess across five dimensions to build a complete operational picture.
Operational Efficiency
- Time-to-delivery for key deliverables (brief to concept, concept to production)
- Turnaround times for revisions, approvals, feedback loops
- Volume of output vs. resource deployed (FTE per asset, cost per deployable asset)
- Communication efficiency (response times, meeting load, brief quality)
- Bottleneck identification — where does work stall and why
Rate & Cost Sufficiency
- Blended rate analysis across all roles touching the lifecycle
- Cost per output type (finished ad, social asset, campaign launch)
- Rate sufficiency against AI-adjusted benchmarks
- FTE-to-output ratios benchmarked against industry standards
- Hidden cost identification (scope creep, over-servicing, unnecessary layers)
AI Capability & Maturity
- Current AI tool adoption across the lifecycle
- AI maturity scoring per stage: Manual to Autonomous
- Practitioner-level assessment — not just tools, but effective usage
- Governance and quality controls around AI-generated output
- Data infrastructure readiness for AI optimisation
Ways of Working & Process Quality
- Briefing quality assessment (data-rich enough for efficient workflows?)
- Approval process mapping (gates, duration, stakeholders)
- Collaboration model analysis (client-agency interaction patterns)
- Technology stack alignment (connected or siloed?)
- Communication patterns — frequency, quality, alignment with project needs
Quality & Effectiveness
- Output quality scoring against agreed standards
- First-time approval rates (approved without revision?)
- Revision cycle analysis (triggers, preventability)
- Campaign effectiveness metrics where available
Assessment Methodology
The assessment combines five evidence-gathering methods to build a picture based on reality, not self-reporting.
Structured Interviews
8–12 per agency, client-side and agency-side
Process Observation
Shadowing real campaign workflows, not theoretical descriptions
Data Analysis
Actual timesheets, project management data, delivery records, communication logs
AI-Powered Document Analysis
Scanning briefs, feedback, reports for pattern identification
Tool & Technology Audit
Hands-on assessment of what is being used and how
Assessment Deliverables
Campaign Lifecycle Efficiency Scorecard
Per-stage scoring across all five dimensions, benchmarked against industry standards.
Efficiency Gap Analysis
Specific, quantified gaps between current performance and achievable efficiency.
Cost of Inaction Report
Annualised commercial impact of the efficiency gap over the contract period.
AI Maturity Map
Visual representation of where AI is and isn't being used, with maturity scores per stage.
Quick Win Identification
Top 10 efficiency improvements achievable within 90 days.
See where you stand
The Efficiency Calculator gives you an instant preliminary assessment. A full CLI Assessment validates with real data.