• by Richard Whitman , Columnist, March 2, 2023

Stagwell CEO Mark Penn told analysts on an earnings call Thursday morning that while tech companies are currently experiencing what he termed “temporary management disarray,” he expects they’ll get their ducks in row and battle for leadership in the realm of artificial intelligence, which he sees as the next big tech development that will dramatically impact the lives of consumers.

And it will certainly play a major role in Stagwell’s growth in the coming years as the firm continues to develop its suite of marketing cloud services, including a media studio offering that will be unveiled in the second or third quarter of 2023.

Today, Penn said, the company is staging a demonstration inside the company of a new AI-driven capability for PR companies that has the ability to write press releases.

AI applications will be both a revenue driver for the company and a cost containment tool, Penn said. The technology, he added will be “central to the management of the company and help us reduce costs further.”

Earlier in the day the company issued full-year 2022 results with guidance of organic net revenue growth of  between 7.5% to 10% for 2023. Investors sent the stock up 12% in morning trading on the news. Penn reaffirmed the company’s long-term goal of 10% to 12% organic growth annually, which he predicted the company would exceed in the 2024-25 cycle with help from an influx of political dollars.

 “We are seeing recovery,” on the macroeconomic front, particularly in the areas of food and gas prices, said Penn. That in turn will help fuel political fund-raising efforts (which are in a bit of a lull period right now) and an “all-out battle for the soul of America” in the leadup to the 2024 presidential election. That election will drive record fund-raising levels, predicted Penn. That’s a key business for the company and  an area Stagwell is expanding.

Digital transformation services, performance marketing and consumer insights and strategy are all top priorities for the firm in 2023, Penn said. M&A will continue to focus on expanding the firm’s global footprint and technology services.

Penn noted that the company participated in $1 billion (billings) worth of new business pitches in 2022 and that the goal for this year is $1.2 billion while targeting more pitches in Europe than the company has participated in previously.

“Our strategy is working,” asserted Penn. “We’re too big to ignore in the marketplace.”