CEO
“What’s Next?” is certainly a critical question on the mind of every marketer today, and GroupM’s Chris Copeland has found a way to answer the challenge. He has literally created What’s Next, an annual GroupM marketer conference, which has become the single largest gathering of WPP clients worldwide. It is a fast-paced and often overwhelming look at what Chris describes as “the undeniable and inevitable shift taking place in our business.” The day-and-a-half, invitation-only event for C-level executives not only surveys a wide range of viewpoints from industry visionaries to passionate startup entrepreneurs, but also delves into contemporary topics like the future of media and the potential for business transformation through data and technology.
According to Chris Copeland, Chief Executive Officer of GroupM Next, the company’s forward-looking media innovation unit, and champion of the What’s Next program, “We saw an opportunity to add value to our clients’ business by creating an event where they could network with their peers and discuss the future of advertising and technology. Agencies and Holding Companies do a lot of gatherings, but we did not see anything like what we envisioned; and three years later, we think it is still unique.”
Conceived as a North American advertiser-focused event in 2011, GroupM’s What’s Next has grown into a truly international offering with versions taking place this year in locations ranging from Latin American to Norway.
Chris Copeland knows that What’s Next covers a lot of topics. “We talk TV in one breath and then audio adventure, audio apps and the brand opportunity in the next. Through it all, the key themes of how to create content, how to optimize your brand assets, and then how and where to disseminate them permeates the entire event. In a consumer choice world where devices and access dictate how brands must keep up, these topics are essential to get right.”
So what has he determined in the 3-year evolution of this GroupM project? “The core mission of What’s Next has not changed,” he states. “What has changed in the last three years is the impact these discussions are having after the fact in the marketing organizations at major brands that attend. When we started, the conversations on the stage were either very tactical or very, very forward looking. Now, with the rate of consumer change spurred by technology adoption, the ideas being presented are almost immediately viable for implementation. Brands can go from asking what’s next to saying that’s now in unprecedented time.”
He adds, “Innovation is central to everything GroupM Next does. The unit was named ‘Next’ to highlight the need to focus on what will disrupt our world in the future and how we can best capitalize on those opportunities.” As CEO, Chris has helped guide the development of GroupM Next, which was established to deliver the best thinking and new insights from within the GroupM community. The unit also focuses on technology innovation connecting all media channels, but especially, online, social, mobile and addressable.
According to Chris, “To be an innovator takes discipline and commitment. My definition of innovation in the work I do means identifying opportunities and committing to seeing them through in order to create a competitive advantage for a brand client.”