Everywhere I look there seems to be a shiny new 'integrated agency' popping up. Is it just me?

Bringing specialist agencies together on a common brief has always had its challenges, so the idea of doing it under one roof sounds great (haven't we been here before?). It's all very well saying it though but are you really telling me that specialists have become integrated by the flick of a website switch?

The big players have a simple answer - buy up specialists to put the skills under one roof. The LBi and Bigmouth Media merger is another example of that. If you're looking at achieving heavy hitting outcomes in this brave new world, that's a formidable combination.

So they've got it right, right? I think they have - and not. They've got all the parts but from my experience they struggle to fit them together into a finely tuned outcome machine; money can't stop legacy, politics and sheer size getting in the way. I'm losing count of the number of people I've met this year who are switched on but are leaving that environment through sheer frustration.

On the flip side, the 'hot' small consultancies with none of those constraints can't seem to crack it either which isn't altogether surprising - how can you afford to have all these specialists on tap to bring a campaign together at relatively short notice? Sure they can buddy up but having too many buddies is a recipe for disaster.

I'm biased (and therefore massively predictable) but being big enough to have the key skills for today's comms campaigns but small enough to be able to use them effectively has got to be the answer.

It's not just about size either - for me, it's having a structure where innovation and integration can thrive and having access to global brands who are willing to invest in new ideas that sit on those pillars. That's when you can really make a difference. I guess time will tell...

Sandy