Article: From plans to concrete work: Impact Frontrunners get going

Amsterdam Impact and BR-ND People turn the Coalition of Impact Frontrunners from plans into action, with three agency teams and City of Amsterdam funding.

Amsterdam's creative communications sector reaches millions of people every day. Late last year, Amsterdam Impact asked a sharper question: what if all that reach worked, on purpose, towards a fairer and more sustainable city? That question now has a name, the Coalition of Impact Frontrunners, and this spring it started turning into work.

Why a coalition, not another campaign

Individual agencies have been doing good work for years. Think of Stichting 113's school-photo advert, or Natuurhuisje's 'don't fly, do land' campaign. But inclusivity, climate and social justice ask for more than a run of single wins. They ask agencies to organise their good intentions together, and to keep going when the next pitch and the next financial target arrive.

Particularly in a period of highly challenging social and technological developments, creative communications agencies can make all the difference in the transition to a fair, inclusive and sustainable economy. They are the link between brand and society and can exert their influence on both the advertiser and the consumer. The way in which you, as an agency, shape this transformative role within the daily reality of pitches and financial targets is no easy feat. Collaboration strengthens the social impact you make as an agency and as a sector.

Ellen Oetelmans, Amsterdam Impact, City of Amsterdam

Amsterdam Impact runs this with creative change agency BR-ND People, brought in for its network across the sector and its experience with positive change.

Every agency feels the tension between commercial objectives and social responsibility. The question isn't whether we should make an impact, but how we organise it. This initiative is on track to provide the answer. Our role is to help translate good intentions into something workable and collective, with the mission in mind.

Alexander Koene, BR-ND People

From ideas to action

In November the group sat down with one blunt question: can the creative sector actually change how people behave, or is it just good at making change look photogenic? Lecturers and students from the Amsterdam University of Applied Sciences (HvA), the industry platform VIA, and the Foundation for Scientific Research on Commercial Communication (SWOCC) joined changemakers from the sector to dig in.

By January the group pushed further: what should this coalition be, and what could it become? The shape is still forming through co-creation, but the ambition is not shy. This wants to be a lasting movement, proof that Amsterdam's creative sector can make money and make a difference at once.

Three teams, three angles

By March the talking was over. Three mixed teams of agencies showed up with something to build, each taking the challenge from a different side:

Inspiring Agencies - a shared model for talent development and collaboration. How do we connect emerging talent from education with the reality of impact-driven work, and how do agencies share knowledge and capacity instead of only competing for it?
Inspiring Clients - a way to deepen the relationship between agency and client, with social value built into every project from the brief onwards, not bolted on at the end.
Inspiring Citizens - an initiative that puts the sector's skills to work in the city itself, sharing neighbourhood knowledge and strengthening civic engagement.

The day also made one thing clear: this is more than a folder of good projects. The group settled on four words to stand on, collective, inclusive, open and connecting, and an ambition that ignores the city limits. Amsterdam first, then a creative sector that helps lead an impact-driven economy.

From plans to concrete work

Over the coming weeks the three plans get sharpened, and the search for the right partners begins, from education to clients, from industry bodies to social partners and funders. The City of Amsterdam is working behind the scenes to put a first kick-start budget on the table, which is usually the moment good intentions meet reality. If this succeeds, fingers crossed, the working groups get to spend it on real steps and find additional external funding.

What comes next

On 23 June, the Coalition of Impact Frontrunners joins the programme aboard the Clipper Stad Amsterdam, running alongside Cannes Lions. The coalition will share where it started, what it has built, and where it is heading. Havas Lemz and Amsterdam Impact form the panel, moderated by BR-ND People. It is a chance to meet potential partners and funders, and to show what Amsterdam's creative sector is building together.

There is no velvet rope here. Any agency with serious impact ambitions can join. The frontrunners have fired the starting gun, and they intend to keep growing the coalition until making impact is simply the norm.

Together we could organise a one-off activity or event. But it's more powerful to think strategically and ask ourselves: how can we influence our entire sector so that we ultimately help our clients make more impact too?

Leontine Gast, The Terrace

Work at a creative communications agency in Amsterdam and want to help build more positive impact? The initiative is open to agencies that want to lead the transition to a more sustainable and inclusive sector. For more information: impact@amsterdam.nl

This initiative is part of Amsterdam Impact's broader mission to help entrepreneurs within and beyond the municipality increase their social impact and contribute to a fair, social and sustainable city.