Sustainable growth in 2025: How BRS prioritises balance and mental wellbeing in creative strategy
Delivering great work is important, but so is enjoying the process. For BRS, 2025 is about strengthening creative strategy while ensuring balance, mental wellbeing, and flexible ways of working. Co-CEO Judith Hoch shares how BRS is shaping a culture where ideas don’t just exist, they evolve, thrive, and drive innovation. Plus, she reveals her go-to rituals for switching off and recharging.
By Judith Hoch
How did 2025 kick off for the agency?
After an intense and rewarding 2024, the team took a well-deserved two-week break over Christmas and New Year. This pause allowed everyone to recharge and return with renewed energy for what lies ahead. Kicking off 2025 on this refreshed note has set a positive tone for tackling the exciting and ambitious goal we’ve set for the year.
Scaling our creative agency: What are the key challenges you’re addressing this year?
One of the most exciting developments for us in 2025 is our team’s growth. Following the addition of four exceptional colleagues who joined us in late 2024, we’re now welcoming four more talented professionals at the start of this year. It’s inspiring to see such experienced professionals eager to join our journey. Of course, this expansion comes with challenges, particularly in ensuring workflows, processes, and remote work setups scale seamlessly alongside the team.
We’re also navigating tighter office space, which is a testament to our growth while continually looking for ways to optimise how we work. A standout in this process has been my colleague Susana, who has made onboarding new team members into an art form. She’s honed this process so effectively that feedback from our newcomers is consistently glowing. With senior talents joining, it’s critical to equip them quickly so they can take ownership of their roles and projects early on. Ensuring a smooth transition is key to maintaining our creative strategy and workflow efficiency.
Strategic communication and long term planning: What lessons from 2024 have shaped your plans for 2025?
If there’s one major takeaway from 2024, it’s this: success hinges on having the right team in place. Understaffing projects or trying to make do with too few people leads to unnecessary strain. Thinking beyond individual projects and planning long-term for both goals and resources has proven essential. These lessons have shaped our strategy for 2025, and we’re building a strong foundation for sustainable growth.
How are you prioritising mental health and well-being for the team during busy times?
Maintaining balance is critical, especially in our fast-paced industry. We’ve implemented flexible work schedules to accommodate part-time, remote work, and individual working hours. After intense on-site periods, we encourage team members to take time off to recharge instead of diving straight into the next project.
We’ve also fostered an environment of open communication through regular cross-team meetings and department check-ins. These moments ensure the team has space to voice their workload and discuss where support might be needed. Our focus is always on ensuring that the team feels supported, heard, and able to thrive rather than just getting through peak periods We all want to also enjoy the process and not just the final event day.
Creative leadership and mental load: How do stay effective?
I’ve found that starting the day with intention and keeping it screen-free has been incredibly grounding. My mornings focus on the usual logistics, breakfast, getting the kids to school, and my commute, but I avoid checking my phone during this time. In fact, I now leave my phone in a different room overnight to keep me from seeing emails and messages before i’ve had a chance to fully transition from rest. Instead, I use the commute to listen to a podcast or some relaxing music, which helps ease me into the day. A small but mindful change I’ve made is saving my first coffee for the office and starting the morning with green tea at home. This simple shift has added a layer of calm to my routine and has been surprisingly effective in setting a soft, intentional tone for the day.
Evenings are when I take time to reflect and wind down. I resist the urge to stay online, choosing instead to unplug, often by reading a good book or catching up on the news. It’s a moment to consider how the day went, what went well, what was challenging and to find some clarity before fully stepping away from work mode. These intentional offline moments, whether in the morning or evening, have been invaluable in maintaining focus, reducing mental fatigue, and staying balanced through busy periods.
