As M&M Global marks its 25th anniversary, David Fletcher, chief data officer at MEC in the UK shares his experiences over the past quarter century.

If you turned back the clock 25 years what were you doing?

Migrating from a small media independent environment (Billett & Co) to a larger one (CIA Billett) in a general planning and buying role. CIA Plc was floated shortly after.

Who has had the biggest influence on your career in the last 25 years?

There have been many. Despite my best endeavours I still regularly quote John Billett; I have a profound respect for the entrepreneurialism of Chris Ingram, the vision of Rob Norman and the relentless determination of Tom George.

What is the best piece of advice – life or work – that you have been given?

“No one on their deathbed ever wished they’d spent more time in the office” from Rob Parson’s The Sixty Minute Father – a book I still find myself giving to new dads.

What person, service, company and product do you think has had the most influential effect on media in the last 25 years?

There is a clear changing of the guard. Sky were the transformational business of the first 15 of those 25 years – and the essential legacies (media as a service; technology as a route to seamless experience; premiumisation of sports rights) remain changed forever.

Between them, Google, Facebook, Amazon are the new generation and their essential legacies (speed of innovation, monetisation through scale, dominance through acquisition) are new business models that the next generation (Spotify, Twitter, Paypal) will doubtless evolve further.

If you could turn back the clock 25 years what would you change about yourself or the industry?

I’d have allowed myself to get more carried away by the hype of the first wave rather than waiting for the second, sustainable wave.

If you were a betting person what or who do you think will have the biggest influence on global media in the next 25 years?

Any future in which a ‘what’ or ‘who’ has the biggest influence is unpalatable. Despite the ever-changing value models, the future of a vibrant global media ecosystem will necessitate technologists, advertisers, publishers, creative producers of all hues, consumers and regulators look for mutual benefit.

What is your favourite advertising campaign of the last 25 years?

Oxo Family. It imbued a stock cube with emotional values that made it integral to life and a campaign that evolved with supreme quality year after year after year. Genius.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iNiU5_r1Aew