A teacher once told me that to do well in any profession, you had to master the fundamentals.

A soccer player, for example, should know how to control the ball, pass, cross, have a vision of the game, shoot at goal with both feet and, yes, take penalties without complaining about the pressure from the crowd.

That was the case during King Pelé's reign, as it is today for Marta, Mbappe, or Salah.

Although new technologies have contributed to changes and transformations in soccer—Liverpool's use of data science to make decisions during matches is a good example—it is still essential to know how to control the ball, have a vision of the game, and pass and shoot at goal.

My teacher's point was clear: Technological innovations are helping to transform everything very quickly, but they do not change the need to master and develop techniques because everything changes quickly, except fundamentals.

Often, players make it to the professional team, paraphrasing former coach Muricy Ramalho, with factory defects. Talents and promising talents who can make effective plays but are not very decisive in essential moments precisely because they lack mastery of the fundamentals.

This situation happens in football and communication, especially for those who work with communication and brand strategy.

We know that communication today is more complex than it was 15 years ago.

Technological changes in media and processes have forced strategists to acquire new skills, learn new disciplines, and perform new tasks.

New nomenclatures have appeared to describe and account for the area's changes. Today, some professionals call themselves cultural Strategists, Creative Strategists, Data Strategists, UX Strategists, Business Strategists, or whatever specialty you want a Strategist to be.

However, this does not mean we should give up learning, developing, and improving fundamentals.

The investigation process through research methodologies is fundamental. Knowing how to define hypotheses, collect, organize, and analyze data and information remains essential;

· Problem definition and clarity in communication intention are essential in an increasingly complex scenario. The IPA (Institute of Practitioners in Advertising), in its best practices guide, says that it is the part that is most important - more than the strategy itself;

· Knowing how to translate data into cohesive thoughts and convey them in an interesting conversation.

Craig Mawdsley, CSO of AMV BBDO, brought up an important point about this:

Some strategists consider the agency brief model an old tool for the current challenges of brands.

However, using the same model, AMV BBDO created:

In the 1980s, the classic Yellow Pages campaign;

In the 90s, the film Twister for Volvo and Surfer for Guinness;

In 2005, the campaign that won gold at the IPA for the retailer Sainsbury's;

In 2011, the campaign that mixed digital-off-activation for Walkers;

In 2019, the important and award-winning campaign for Libresse.

If the premise that brief models can no longer solve contemporary challenges is true, what made the difference in all these jobs?

According to Craig, some fundamentals were very well-defined tasks and problems and, of course, the quality of the conversation that this generated.

Buzzwords, new methodologies, and trend reports can mask the lack of mastery and clarity of fundamentals.

Holding a good meeting, making the elevator ride more interesting, or perhaps having a good activation can help in the short term—and those who are starting out may think that this is enough—but mastering fundamentals has always made a difference in solving brands' big issues.

I

n the next few years, a lot will change in the communications industry, but fundamentals will not.

Therefore, training, learning, and improving fundamentals are essential to developing strategists who are not eternal promises.