This year there have been a lot of new, exciting developments at the AC, including our introducing the AC Academy.
The course is run by the AC’s Head of People and Wellbeing (and resident HR expert), Sarah May.
AS AN AGENCY OWNER, SHOULD YOU INVEST IN YOUR OWN LEARNING AND DEVELOPMENT?
Most founders will start an agency because they are good at a “thing”. That thing might be copywriting, animation, SEO, website design, or something else that you are skilled enough in to offer a service to other businesses.
And then your agency starts growing, you take on freelancers to start with, and then your first employee, and before you know it, you have a lovely team of employees who all look to you for support and guidance in their own career journey.
Having employees is a totally different ball game. And no one tells you how to do it.
No longer do you just have to look after yourself, but you need to consider your legal obligations and you need to make sure that they are trained and supported. You also might need to know what to do when things go a bit pear shaped.
INTRODUCING THE AC ACADEMY
At the Agency Collective, we kept hearing from agencies about the need for some soft skills training, and in October 2022, we launched the AC Academy to great success.
The AC Academy is a suite of online learning, delivered by Zoom, that helps agency owners, or other people managers in their teams, with the basics of people management.
We cover everything from how to have good quality conversations that help improve performance, productivity and morale to how to deliver feedback, even when it’s difficult.
We cover the basics of employment law – you won’t become an expert overnight, however you will learn the bits you need to at least know what you need to do to get started, and when to seek further advice.
We also cover performance management and how to manage those individuals who can have the biggest impact on your team if they aren’t up to scratch.
WHY INVEST IN YOUR OWN LEARNING?
Running an agency is hard work. You spend a lot of time working IN your business, but not enough time working ON your business. But YOU ARE your business, so spending time on YOU is equally important.
You will learn skills that will help you become a better people manager, and in turn, this will help you develop better people. And who doesn’t want better people in their teams?
Not only that, but you will learn alongside a group of other agency owners who know what it’s like, have experienced the same challenges as you so you won’t feel so alone. The training also makes plenty of time for sharing stories, you can learn from each other too.
WHAT DO PEOPLE SAY ABOUT THE AC ACADEMY?
“WOW – my brain hurts, it’s so full of amazing information. Thank you so much!!” – Giles Hales- Tooke, Powered By Coffee
“Thanks so much for training today!! Really useful takeaways and I can’t wait for our cheat-sheet” – Hattie D’Souza, East Village
