Lesley Bielby was part of the second wave of account planners who landed on US shores. She is currently the CSO of Hill Holliday- her second time in this role and has spent time at Digitas, Di Massimo Goldstein. MMB and a number of London shops.
She has just written a book - Super Strategist- The Art and Science of Modern Account Planning. It is designed to be a guide to Account Planning today, taking the core principles and craft from the origins back in the late 1960s and merging them with the new demands of data, science that come from the worlds of digital and social.
In our conversation, we talk about the evolution of the discipline and the challenges and new demands of it today. Lesley offers a ton of practical and pragmatic observations and insight about what a Strategy Department looks like and how it functions in 2021.
She takes a long-term view of talent development asking the individuals in her time to declare a major and two minors, a reflection of the evolution of the Planning discipline, and to ensure that everyone has the comprehensive set of skills required today.