There’s an old industry saying that agencies get the clients they deserve, and clients get the agencies they deserve. And in the emerging AI era, Joe DeMiero argues both sides will need to adjust their expectations to get stronger results.
DeMiero has sat on both sides of that relationship—twice as an agency CEO, then as interim CMO and VP of Marketing at Sam’s Club, and now as Chief Client and Business Officer, North America at Havas. In this episode of AdTech Unfiltered, host Noor Naseer sits down with DeMiero at Cannes Lions 2026 to talk about what’s changed for CMOs, why agencies need to stop treating in-housing as a threat, and how trust actually gets rebuilt after something goes wrong.
Joe draws on his time inside Sam’s Club’s marketing organization to explain why the CFO-CMO relationship has tightened, why agentic commerce is compressing the path from discovery to purchase, and why the best agency partners listen more than they present. The conversation also covers the agency new business process, the pressure driving talent burnout at both ends of the seniority ladder, and why Joe believes business strategy should shape AI investment rather than the other way around. Subscribe to AdTech Unfiltered for more conversations with the people shaping the future of advertising.
The terms of the brand-agency relationship are changing fast, and few have seen it from as many sides as W. Joe DeMiero. The two-time agency CEO, former Sam’s Club CMO, and current Havas CCO unpacks evolving C-suite dynamics, talent burnout, and where AI fits best.
