Initiative has been named Media Agency of the Year at the Campaign US Agency of the Year Awards 2026 after engineering one of the industry’s most striking turnarounds. Entering 2025 on the heels of losing two major legacy accounts, the agency rebounded with more than $2 billion in new billings—the highest of any North American agency in the first half of the year. That resurgence was driven by a disciplined reset: leadership retooled its pitch strategy and quickly secured major wins, including Bayer, Paramount, Anthropic, and Volvo, while strengthening key relationships with Merck and expanding its remit internationally with Intuit.
The momentum extended into breakthrough client work rooted in Initiative’s Fame & Flow framework, which connects cultural relevance with seamless consumer journeys across more than 130 channels. From a bold HIV prevention podcast for Gilead Sciences that drove meaningful behavioral intent, to standout campaigns for Intuit and T-Mobile that delivered record engagement and brand lift, the agency proved its ability to turn creativity into measurable impact. In doing so, Initiative transformed a year of adversity into a defining demonstration of growth, innovation, and cultural relevance.
Last year, Initiative was ranked #1 in COMvergence’s Global Media Rankings. It was a proud moment – but what I keep coming back to is what it sets us up for,” said Initiative Global Brand President Stacey DeRiso. “Being part of Omnicom now means our clients get access to something genuinely different: Acxiom’s data depth, Flywheel’s commerce backbone, stronger buying power, and a unified intelligence platform that ties it together. The goal hasn’t changed – build brand Fame, drive customer Flow, deliver real momentum for our clients – but our ability to deliver on that has never been greater.”