Bigger doesn’t mean better: How moving to a contractor-led model boosted my bottom line
In an industry where bigger often equals better, Lisa Burling, founder of Grass is Greener Marketing Communications, has taken a different route, and it’s paid off.
After running a PR agency with a huge in-house team for years, she restructured her business and pivoted to a contractor-led model. And as a result, she’s watched her profit margin soar.
Lisa Burling
Bigger doesn’t always mean better. In fact, in the agency world, it can be the fastest way to kill profit, creativity and even passion. For years, I chased the traditional playbook -grow the team, expand the office, add more clients – and for years I quietly wondered why success felt so heavy.
On the surface, everything looked fine. A big team, national awards, plenty of clients. But behind the scenes, the overheads were suffocating, HR dramas never stopped, and my margins were paper-thin. Worst of all, I was disconnected from the work I loved. Instead of being a leader and strategist, I had become a full-time manager of problems. I’d often be heard saying “I thought I studied PR not HR” as I walked into the office each day, ready for another round of The Ego Olympics.
So I did the unthinkable. I tore it down and rebuilt. I rebranded the business to reflect what we truly deliver, and I pivoted to a contractor-led model.
It wasn’t a small decision. The “bigger is better” mindset is stitched deep into our industry, and walking away from it felt like swimming against the tide. But I also knew that if I didn’t change, the business – and me – wouldn’t survive. Like many agency founders, I’d travelled down the road to burnout more than once and I decided that my health and wellbeing wasn’t going to be collateral damage in a situation I actually had control over. The tail had wagged the dog long enough.
Here’s the part people often misunderstand: going lean doesn’t mean going it alone. I still have one key employee, my second-in-command. She’s my trusted confidant and a fellow guardian of the client brief, strategy, delivery and outcomes. Together, we’re the anchor. Around us sits a flexible network of specialist contractors, engaged on demand for their skills. Clients know they have accountability through me and my 2IC, while also benefiting from top-tier talent tailored to their needs.
I have never subscribed to the model of ‘win the work and pass it down the chain’. I experienced this first-hand in bigger agencies I worked at in the UK as I built my career and it inevitably didn’t work. In my opinion, while a junior team member managing a campaign may work in a productivity spreadsheet, it won’t work when it comes to client retention and profitability. There’s also the small matter of fairness – expecting junior team members to carry the weight of strategic decision making and client confidence isn’t going to deliver the best possible outcome. In this new business model, my clients get senior counsel from me and my 2IC every day.
The shift transformed everything. Within a year, my profit margin doubled. Clients got sharper, faster results. The business became agile, scaling up or down without stress. And I found joy again. Instead of firefighting internal issues, I was back in the space I love – strategy, creativity, relationships. I even carved out enough time to study a Bachelor of Laws, something I’ve long wanted to do to feed my curiosity. Yes, I am a nerd, but now I am a happy one that sleeps at night, rather than worrying whether I can pay my BAS on time.
Of course, this model isn’t a free ride. It demands systems, clarity and trust. Contractors need clear expectations. Clients need confidence that quality won’t slip without a traditional in-house team. But when communication is tight and accountability is clear, it doesn’t just work, it thrives.
What I’ve learned is simple: growth for the sake of appearances is a trap. Success isn’t headcount or an office size. It isn’t even revenue.
Success is profit, sustainability, and loving the business you’ve built. It’s also having a life outside of it.
The contractor-led model may not be right for everyone, but I believe more boutique agencies will embrace it as talent shortages bite, client demands intensify, and work-life balance becomes non-negotiable.
For me, the answer wasn’t bigger. It was smarter, leaner, and infinitely more rewarding.
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