Why do brands need a strategist ? - Episode 06

Most people in our industry are too uncomfortable to ask this key question. Bhaskar Bateja asked it anyway; in print and in Campaign Middle East. It's the question that sets the tone for our entire conversation. R&D engineer. Part-time musician. Three-time MENA Effie juror. Head of Strategy & Regional AI Lead at Memac Ogilvy UAE. He is one of the sharpest strategic minds this region has produced. This conversation is all about the person behind the strategies. 🎧 In this episode: 1:12 Disclaimer 1:35 Act 1 The Person 2:50 What kind of child were you and what did you want to become at that point of time? 6:45 Was there a person or a moment that made you believe that you can make that switch from engineering to something else? 7:27 Act 2 The Early Career 7:36 Walk us through your first job in strategy. What did it feel like? 11:16 Was there a big failure at that point of time in your earlier years, and what did it do to you? 12:40 What drove you to keep moving? 14:31 Act 3 The Craft of Strategy 14:45 What does a strategist actually do when the brief arrives? 16:06 Imagine strategy as an X 17:18 How do you find the truth that a client's data has missed or focus group could never reveal? 20:17 The marriage between instinct and data has to be stronger 27:26 Looking at your work from a real world impact point of view 28:30 Act 4 The Work 28:39 Burger King; What was the brief and how did the insight come in?    • BURGER KING KUWAIT | HOTTER IS COOLER   33:15 Toyota Her Story    • Toyota: Journey into Herstory   36:16 IKEA Sleep Collection   / dplaugbivqx   41:46 What's the feeling like when you get to know there are five agencies gunning for it? 43:28 What's the feeling like when you get a regret email after the pitch, which you have working probably a month and a half? 46:12 Which brand strategy would you want or would you have thought that I would want to write this strategy? 46:32 Tata Safari    • Reclaim your life - Tata Safari TVC   48:49 Has there every been a brief you have ever said, no, I don't want to work on this brief? 50:24 Act 5 People, Culture & the Real World 50:43 Navigating Conflict 53:19 What do clients probably get wrong when they're briefing an agency? 54:28 Do you every burnout; and if ever you do, what do you do to come out of it? 54:54 When you are doing something repeatedly that you do not want to do leads to burn out 56:28 How do you manage conflict in your team and probably conflict upwards or conflict downwards? 57:37 Act 6 AI & the Future 58:31 Neural Networks 1:00:45 What specifically can AI now do that you built your career on ? 1:01:44 Attachment and Identity 1:06:41 What does the strategist look like in 2026? 1:09:01 What would you tell that younger version of yourself? 1:09:42 What would be your advice for budding strategist or mid mangers thinking of moving to strategy planning? 1:11:56 Rapid Fire The GCC has great stories to share with the rest of the world If this conversation inspired you; .share it with someone who needs to hear it. And if there's someone you'd love to see in this room let us know in the comments. 🎙️ Hosted by The Marketing Room Stay tuned for more episodes. #TheMarketingRoom #BhaskarBateja #Marketing #Strategy #BrandStrategy #AI #Advertising #MarketingStrategy #FLCMarketingGroup