Free Daily Podcast Summary
Second Wind by AKA: Daily Summaries Delivered
by Gully Flowers, Kerrie Finch, Jake Neske
Second Wind is the show about how creative power is built. Hosted by Also Known As, Second Wind features candid conversations with the creative leaders, founders, CMOs, producers, and operators shaping modern creativity. We go inside the work, pressure, politics, pivots, and instincts behind ideas that change careers, companies, and culture. These are conversations about reputation, taste, production, leadership, reinvention, AI, in-house agencies, and how great work actually gets made. For creative leaders, producer buyers, brand builders, agency founders, and anyone trying to understand
Latest Episodes
The most recent episodes — sign up to get AI-powered summaries of each one.
- 4 days ago43 min
Amazon Chief Brand Officer Jo Shoesmith on Leadership, AI & Creativity | Second Wind by AKA
What does it take to lead one of the world’s biggest brands?Jo Shoesmith joins Kerrie Finch and Gully Flowers shortly after becoming Chief Brand Officer at Amazon to discuss leadership, AI, creativity, agency relationships, and why the best leaders never stop proving themselves.From Amazon’s leadership principles to building trust, influencing at scale, and preparing for a future shaped by AI, this is a practical conversation for anyone leading creative teams, brands, or businesses.In this episode:Becoming Amazon’s Chief Brand OfficerAmazon’s approach to leadership and trustHow AI is changing creative workWorking with agencies more effectivelyWhy great leaders prove themselves every dayBuilding influence beyond the creative departmentAbout Second Wind by AKASecond Wind by AKA features candid conversations with the creative leaders, founders, CMOs, producers, and operators shaping modern marketing, business, and culture.New episodes every other Tuesday.https://hey-aka.com/second-wind
- 2 weeks ago34 min
Why Agencies Are Selling the Wrong Thing ; Anthony Reeves, Kohler
AI is making execution cheaper. Brands are building stronger in-house teams. Holding companies are consolidating. Production companies are being pushed further downstream.So what are agencies still uniquely for?Anthony Reeves has spent his career inside some of the world’s biggest agency networks and brands. He has worked at WPP multiple times, held senior roles at Amazon and LVMH, and now leads Global Brand and Creative at Kohler.Anthony joins Gully Flowers to discuss why agencies cannot win on efficiency, Kohler’s line on synthetic people, why too much data can weaken a creative brief, how fear changes the work, and why AI may make brand more valuable rather than less.They also get into creative apprenticeship, why great talent clusters, the danger of becoming too comfortable, and Anthony’s book, Eat the Donkey.Follow Second Wind for honest conversations with the people shaping the creative business.Chapters00:00 Why agencies can’t win on efficiency00:39 Anthony Reeves01:21 Moving to Kohler, Wisconsin01:55 The job of a creative leader02:36 Kohler’s line on synthetic people04:14 How AI changed since Cannes 201806:01 Has more data improved the creative brief?08:40 What happened to the holding companies?10:14 What brands still need agencies for12:44 Fear changes the work14:01 How to lead creative teams18:55 Why AI makes brand more valuable21:18 Eat the Donkey25:56 Advice for young creatives28:19 Why great talent clusters30:22 Reinvesting in people and brand31:22 The danger of being downstream32:40 A better North Star
- Jun 30, 202652 min
Susan Credle on M&M’s, Allstate Mayhem, Brave Clients, and the Death of Populist Advertising
Susan Credle has helped build some of the most famous advertising characters of the last 30 years, from the M&M’s ensemble to Allstate’s Mayhem. In this episode of Second Wind, she joins Kerrie Finch and Gully Flowers for a sharp, funny and unusually honest conversation about what makes creative work last.Susan talks about seeing brands as characters, how M&M’s grew from candy mascots into a comedic ensemble, why Mayhem worked because it was deeply strategic, and what great clients do that risk-averse ones often miss.She also gets into one of the biggest tensions in modern advertising: the gap between work that wins awards and work that reaches real people. From the rise of case studies to the decline of truly populist creative, Susan makes the case for work that does not need to be followed around and explained.This is a conversation about brave clients, fragile progress, creative leadership, the pressure of becoming one of the first female CCOs in America, and why the best work should make someone in the world say thank you.
- Jun 9, 202637 min
Why Neurodiversity Exposes the Myth of the “Normal User”
We keep designing for a “normal” user.The problem is, that person does not exist.For neurodiverse people, that myth shows up early. In classrooms. In checklists. In systems that reward one way of thinking, one way of sitting still, one way of paying attention, one way of moving through the world.On this episode of Second Wind, Gully Flowers and Kerrie Finch talk with David Vogel, Executive Experience Director at Hypersolid, about neurodiversity, accessibility, AI, and the future of human-centered design.David argues that accessibility should not be treated as an edge case or a compliance layer. It should be foundational. Because once you stop designing for the fictional average person, you can start designing for actual humans.The conversation moves from ADHD and school systems to crash test dummies, smart workplaces, Google, Siemens, Lotus, and AI-powered customer experiences. It also gets into why ChatGPT is only the first crude interface for AI, why brands should be careful about handing their customer relationships to AI platforms, and how intelligent experiences could create more adaptive, personal, and useful interactions across digital and physical spaces.This is a conversation about neurodiversity, inclusive design, accessibility, AI strategy, personalization, brand experience, and the future of interfaces.In this episode, we coverHow neurodiversity reframes accessibilityWhy school can punish ADHD and neurodiverse peopleWhat crash test dummies reveal about designing for averagesWhy AI needs to move beyond the chatbotHow brands can use AI without surrendering customer relationshipsWhat intelligent experiences could mean for workplaces, retail, and personalizationGuest: David Vogel, Executive Experience Director at HypersolidHosts: Gully Flowers and Kerrie FinchPodcast: Second Wind
- May 26, 202659 min
Why Great Ads Feel Like Childhood Memories | Marques Gartrell, W+K
Marques Gartrell is Co-CCO of Wieden+Kennedy New York, the agency behind work for Nike, McDonald’s, Delta, and Michelob Ultra.In this episode of Second Wind:how the Travis Scott meal started from a tweetwhy the Grimace Shake became internet folklorehow W+K made “Horizontal Breakfast” in 7 dayswhy brands are competing with childhood memorieswhat young creatives get wrongwhy Marques still keeps Photoshop openA conversation about culture, instinct, taste, speed, and making work people actually carry around with them.The best work stops feeling like advertising and starts feeling like part of someone’s life.
- May 12, 202654 min
From Verizon's $3B Budget to OpenAI's Frontier: Andrew McKechnie on Modern Creative Leadership
Andrew McKechnie is Head of Business Creative Studio at OpenAI. Before that he was SVP and Chief Creative Officer at Verizon, where he ran a $3 billion marketing budget and built a 300-person in-house agency. Before that he was Global Head of Design Group at Apple. Across his career he has won a Gold Cannes Lion, multiple D&AD pencils, six straight Webbys, and an Emmy nomination.He sits down with Gully Flowers to talk about what happens when a creative decides the brief is too late, and the only way to do better work is to move upstream. They cover what the agency model got wrong, why it was an operating issue and not a talent issue, what a real in-house team is and is not, why physical craft matters more in the AI era, and what OpenAI's merch program reveals about modern brand building.A conversation for anyone leading creative work inside a brand, agency, or startup right now.
- Apr 28, 202645 min
The Old Spice Genius Who Wrote a Skittles Spot About Murder - Craig Allen, CALLEN
Craig Allen wrote the Skittles spot where a man accidentally murders his family with rainbow candy. He helped make the Old Spice response campaign ; 286 videos in 36 hours, one every 7 minutes, until they broke YouTube. Then he left Wieden+Kennedy, asked Dan Wieden what to call his new agency, and got told every name was stupid.This week on Second Wind, the founder and CCO of CALLEN sits down with Gully Flowers and Kerrie Finch to talk about how to sell ideas that scare clients to death.Inside the episode:- Why the best risky ideas are “stupid smart” — and how to make a CMO feel dumb for not buying them- The real story behind the Skittles Touch shoot: explosives, cops, a $$$$ glass desk filled with hundreds of thousands of real Skittles, and one PA running through the shot- How a six-person writers’ room turned Old Spice into the fastest creative operation in advertising history- Why Dan Wieden made him put his own name on the agency (and why it changed how he works)- The case for fun as a strategic weapon, not a vibe- What independent agencies have to do now that the holding cos have stopped pretending to care about creativityCraig has won two Cannes Grand Prix, the Grand Effie, Best in Show at The One Show, two black D&AD pencils, an Emmy, and was once named one of the 50 sexiest creatives in the world by Creativity Magazine. We do not let him forget it.Second Wind is a Webby Honoree podcast at the intersection of creativity, leadership, and advertising. Hosted by Gully Flowers and Kerrie Finch of AKA. New episodes fortnightly.Leave a review if it landed.
- Apr 14, 202636 min
How Old Spice Happened: Eric Kallman on Skittles, Craft, and 250 Scripts for One Spot | Second Wind
Eric Kallman is the co-founder and chief creative officer of Erich & Kallman, the independent agency behind standout work for brands like Reese’s, King’s Hawaiian, Franzia, Toyota and more. Before that, he helped create some of the most iconic advertising of the last two decades, including Old Spice, Skittles, Little Caesars, Kayak and Ragu. Erich & Kallman was named Ad Age’s 2024 Small Agency of the Year and was later recognized as a 2025 A-List standout. In this episode of Second Wind, Eric talks about how Old Spice almost died before it changed culture, why absurd work only works when the product truth is dead simple, and what most young creatives are skipping when they chase shortcuts. He gets into the discipline behind funny advertising, the value of silence in the creative process, why six weeks and 250 scripts used to be normal, and how AI can help if it gives creatives more time to think instead of less. Topics include Old Spice, Skittles, creative discipline, copywriting, campaign craft, small agencies, advertising fundamentals, AI in creative work, and what it takes to make funny ads that actually sell.
About Second Wind by AKA
Second Wind is the show about how creative power is built. Hosted by Also Known As, Second Wind features candid conversations with the creative leaders, founders, CMOs, producers, and operators shaping modern creativity. We go inside the work, pressure, politics, pivots, and instincts behind ideas that change careers, companies, and culture. These are conversations about reputation, taste, production, leadership, reinvention, AI, in-house agencies, and how great work actually gets made. For creative leaders, producer buyers, brand builders, agency founders, and anyone trying to understand
Customized Recaps
AI-powered recaps with compact key takeaways, quotes, and insights.
Straight to Your Inbox
Get key takeaways from Second Wind by AKA in a 5-minute read.
Save Hours Every Week
Stay current on your favorite podcasts without falling behind.
Frequently Asked Questions
What is Podzilla's Second Wind by AKA daily summary?
It's a free AI-powered email that summarizes new episodes of Second Wind by AKA as soon as they're published. You get the key takeaways, notable quotes, and links & mentions — all in a quick read.
How does the Second Wind by AKA podcast summary work?
When a new episode drops, our AI transcribes and analyzes it, then generates a personalized summary tailored to your interests and profession. It's delivered to your inbox every morning.
Is this an official Second Wind by AKA product?
No. Podzilla is an independent service that summarizes publicly available podcast content. We're not affiliated with or endorsed by Gully Flowers, Kerrie Finch, Jake Neske.
Can I get summaries of other podcasts too?
Absolutely! The free plan covers up to 3 podcasts. Upgrade to Pro for 15, or Premium for 50. Browse our full catalog at /podcasts.
How often does Second Wind by AKA release new episodes?
Second Wind by AKA publishes biweekly. Our AI generates a summary within hours of each new episode.
What topics does Second Wind by AKA cover?
Second Wind by AKA covers topics including Business, Marketing. Our AI identifies the specific themes in each episode and highlights what matters most to you.
Start getting Second Wind by AKA summaries tomorrow morning.
Free forever for up to 3 podcasts. No credit card required.
Free forever for up to 3 podcasts. No credit card required.