GenAI is already here. Now what?

GenAI debates are everywhere in our industry. What does it mean for work, for agencies, and for the future? You’ll find posts evangelising it, mocking it, and warning of creative collapse. As always, reality is more complex. GenAI can remove the ‘stuff’ that gets in the way of creativity, or it could erode creativity itself. The difference lies in how we adopt it, and how we don’t.

I’ve been exploring this as part of my doctorate at Aston Business School. My work focuses on how people are adopting GenAI meaningfully, without losing what makes creative. This is not about shiny tools. It’s about how we define AI’s role, how we frame it, and how we talk to clients about what creativity means in an AI world.

To help, here are six tips, summarised as ‘CREATE’, for adopting GenAI mindfully.

Collaborate with your clients

Clients want innovation, but also clarity and control. A shallow understanding of GenAI positions it as faster and cheaper, not better. Many clients are cautious, and for good reason. Legal, ethical and brand concerns are real, and different for each client.

Lead better ongoing conversations. About tools, but also about what GenAI means for creativity. These conversations work best when they go beyond timelines and outputs and get to the heart of what creative value really is.

Tip: Don’t wait for clients to raise topics. Share what you’re learning in the agency continually, where it adds value, and what it means for their brands and business.

Respect difference

Adoption is about people. And people think, create and adopt differently. Some are curious. Others are unsure. Some jump straight into GenAI tools. Others feel blocked or threatened. Creatives are never one-size-fits-all, and neither is GenAI adoption. If you overlook that, you risk confusion, resentment or disengagement. All slow progress.

Tip: Map how teams work, where they feel stuck, and how they feel about GenAI. Build an approach around real concerns and inspirations.

Enable experimentation

Some of the best GenAI uses start with unstructured play. Helping people explore tools on their own terms builds confidence and helps surface practical, ethical and creative questions early. Some GenAI workflows can began as side projects. That openness and experimentation makes it easier for others to follow.

Tip: Give your people time and permission to experiment, with guardrails around privacy and IP. Share what works, and what doesn’t.

Amplify what (and who) is working

Adoption can start in unexpected places. It isn’t about seniority or roles. People often see the AI opportunity clearly, but they need support. Real progress happens when leadership recognises what is working and helps it grow.

Tip: Find your internal pioneers. Give them space to lead and use their insights to shape your wider approach: bottom-up momentum with top-down backing.

Target real pain points

GenAI does not need a big reveal. It needs a clear role. Start where people feel pressure: repetitive work, bottlenecks, things that drain time or energy. These usually have nothing directly to do with creativity, and usually start with that usual hate, time sheets.

Tip: Start small and specific. Use GenAI to tackle existing pain points. Let usefulness drive adoption, not novelty.

Establish your AI policy and a model

If you are using GenAI without a policy, now is the time to write one, even if it sounds unnecessary. A good policy should reflect your values, outline what’s expected, and give people the confidence to create responsibly. Without this, even well-meaning use can drift into grey areas around IP, bias or transparency.

At the same time, we need to evolve how we price, scope and package work. GenAI changes how we deliver creative value. Our commercial models need to keep up.

Tip: Treat GenAI as part of your creative, commercial and cultural model. Build in policies and pricing that reflect the work you want to do.

Help our industry - get involved

If we get GenAI wrong, we risk undermining creativity and hollowing out careers. If we get it right, we can inspire greater creativity.

I’m currently researching how creatives are engaging with GenAI – how they are experiencing it as individuals, not their agencies.

If you’re a creative, I’d love to speak to you. It doesn’t matter how you feel about GenAI or how much you do or don’t use it. To take part, get in touch via email or on LinkedIn.

Neil Davidson is a Doctoral Researcher on GenAI and Creativity and Chief Executive Officer at HeyHuman.

The opinions expressed here are those of the authors and were submitted in accordance with the IPA terms and conditions regarding the uploading and contribution of content to the IPA newsletters, IPA website, or other IPA media, and should not be interpreted as representing the opinion of the IPA.