Agency Leadership Decoded: We Are Social’s Patt Nitikarn on embodying an agile and adaptive leadership

Marketing has always been about being able to quickly adapt to changing trends and behaviour in your locality while also keeping in mind the basics of impactful reach. This is especially relevant for a vibrant market like Thailand whose growing digital economy is perfectly paired with a population with diverse preferences. 

With that in mind, there is a greater challenge involved in how Thai’s adland is able to quickly adapt to these changes while also keeping in mind cultural nuances and boundaries, including the ongoing year-long mourning period following the death of Queen Mother Sirikit.

In our latest Agency Leadership Decoded, we had the chance to catch up with Patt Nitikarn, managing director at We Are Social Thailand, to learn more of his leadership style, and his insights on being an effective adland leader through quick learning and understanding.

Adapting to ‘social’ fast

For Patt, he best describes his leadership as somewhat of a blend on agility and adaptability, something that is well-catered to a vibrant market like Thailand.

“I would describe my leadership philosophy as agile and adaptive when it comes to adapting to new trends, technologies, and consumer shifts. And, servant leadership when it comes to building an agency that thrives by adding real values to the clients’ brands and businesses,” he said.

He then adds that in order to have these traits and also succeed in the longer run, agency leaders must implement their own formula for success that can be proven as a win for both clients and stakeholders.

“The winning formula for running a successful agency is strong insight, creative ideas, and execution, but in a socially-led creative agency, it has to be strong cultural insights, socially-driven creative ideas, the right platform, and tangible business impact.,” he noted.

When asked on specific hallmarks of having a strong agency culture while managing the pressures of fast turnarounds and always-on work, Patt says that as a socially-led creative agency,  they have to adapt the way they do ‘social’ fast, based on what’s trending on platforms at the moment.

“Here at We Are Social Thailand, we use ‘the hustling spirit’ in driving agency culture. We hustle in two ways: to serve the clients and meet their needs for fast turnaround and always-on work and we hustle to bring new ideas and executions that drive social interactions,” he stated.

How to approach agency leadership the right way

Being the managing director of a socially-led creative agency in a vibrant market in Southeast Asia, Patt sees himself as a cultural advisor who tunes into the pulse of social – from what’s trending to new memes to new ways of connecting with consumers.

“Our relationship with clients is not reactive, we proactively lead our clients to new ways of creating brand communications for social media,” he says.

He then notes that this relationship goes even deeper when they see clients ready to take on culturally-driven conversations. 

“For clients’ with a great appetite to get involved in cultural and social conversations, we help them navigate the scene so that the connection between brands and communities on social is authentic and real,” he added.

In terms of leadership lessons, Patt remarks that while making a difference has been the norm in the industry, there is still also a formula involved in order to make their work impactful.

“I believe in “breaking the mould” in everything we do. However, in the social and creative industry, there are a number of ‘formulas’ from strategy to creative to execution. It’s easy to fall into the trap of “the golden standards” [or] “this is how it’s done.”,” he explained.

He then says that making a difference as a leader shouldn’t be done by yourself but rather as a collective.

“The leadership lesson I wish I had learned earlier is to not only start from breaking the mould myself, but to encourage the entire agency to break the mould together. In 

In today’s world, the rules of the game are changing faster than ever before. The old formula is outdated fast. We might as well start from breaking them,” Patt explains.

Moving forward, agency leaders of the future must have the ability to navigate ambiguity and learn fast. 

“The emergence of AI and how it will  transform social media will push agency leaders to the new level of competition. I  believe that we are all starting from the same point, but those who learn fast  and can navigate the future that is not clear yet will be able to succeed,” he concluded.

***

Ultimately, Patt’s perspective underscores that leadership in today’s socially driven landscape is less about having all the answers and more about cultivating the mindset to learn, adapt, and move forward together. By grounding agility in cultural understanding, empowering teams to challenge outdated formulas, and guiding clients with conviction through an ever-shifting social ecosystem, he demonstrates how modern agency leaders can turn uncertainty into opportunity. As platforms, technologies, and consumer behaviours continue to evolve at speed, it is this collective willingness to break the mould and navigate the unknown that will define the agencies — and leaders — who remain truly relevant.