Libsyn Directory

How Agencies Should Think About and Manage Risk | EP 20

Release Date: 12/30/2025

Turning Every New Client Opportunity Into an Agency’s Compounding Asset | EP25

The AgencyHabits Podcast

Most agencies treat client work as a series of one-off transactions. But the most successful firms treat every engagement as an investment that compounds over time. In this episode, hosts Peter Kang and Sei Wook Kim introduce the concept of engagement yield: the tangible and intangible value that extends far beyond the invoice. They break down the four components of engagement yield; proof, leverage, relationships, and referrals. And explains how agencies can systematically capture this value. Peter and Sei Wook share practical strategies for turning client work into lasting assets: from...

Why Peter Wrote a Book on Holding Companies | EP24

The AgencyHabits Podcast

In this special episode, host Sei-Wook Kim interviews Barrel Holdings co-founder Peter Kang about his new book, The HoldCo Guide: How Entrepreneurs Structure and Build a Holding Company That Lasts. Peter shares the organic journey that led him to write the book, from scaling a single agency to building a multi-agency holding company, and why no existing resource fully addressed the topic. He breaks down the core concepts every entrepreneur should understand: the spectrum between capital allocator and operational HoldCos, the critical balance of centralization vs. decentralization, and the...

Breaking Down Agency Employee Compensation | EP23

The AgencyHabits Podcast

Compensation is more than just a number. It’s a strategic tool for attracting, retaining, and motivating talent. In this episode, hosts Peter Kang and Sei-Wook Kim unpack the full spectrum of employee compensation in an agency setting. They start by acknowledging that while pay is crucial, it’s not the only factor. Culture, management, challenging work, and company trajectory all play vital roles. From there, they dive into the core components: base salary (and how to set competitive, geographically-aware bands), benefits (health insurance, 401k, PTO, and creative perks), and both short-...

Annual Checkup: 9 Markers to Diagnose Your Agency’s Health | EP22

The AgencyHabits Podcast

Most agencies only seek help when something is broken. But by then, the problems are often systemic. In this episode, hosts Peter Kang and Sei-Wook Kim shift the conversation from reactive fixes to proactive health. They introduce a holistic “annual checkup” framework, mapping nine critical agency functions to body parts and their vital signs: from positioning (vision) and client trust (heart rate) to revenue stability (blood pressure) and risk resilience (immune system). Drawing from their experience building and scaling Barrel, Peter and Sei-Wook explain how to spot early warning signals...

Evolving from Managing Projects to Growing Accounts | EP21

The AgencyHabits Podcast

Growing from single-project engagements to managing multiple, concurrent work streams is a major turning point for any agency. In this episode, hosts Peter Kang and Sei-Wook Kim unpack the structural shift required to turn this complexity into a sustainable competitive advantage. Drawing from their own hard-earned lessons at Barrel, they dissect the common pitfalls like team silos, client misalignment, and leader burnout, that can derail multi-faceted accounts. Peter and Sei-Wook break down the three critical roles needed for success: Account Leadership for strategy and relationships, Program...

How Agencies Should Think About and Manage Risk | EP 20

The AgencyHabits Podcast

In this episode, Peter Kang and Sei-Wook Kim break down how agency owners should think about risk, not as isolated problems to react to, but as ongoing exposure that needs to be actively managed. Using a simple risk matrix, they explain how to prioritize risks based on likelihood and impact, and why high-impact risks deserve disproportionate attention. They then walk through nine of the most consequential risks agencies face, from founder burnout and partner misalignment to legal exposure, cash flow insolvency, client concentration, and strategic drift. For each, they share practical ways to...

Learning From Other Agency Owners | EP19

The AgencyHabits Podcast

Great agencies are not built in isolation. In this episode, Peter Kang and Sei-Wook Kim explore the transformative power of community and peer learning for agency founders. The hosts share their personal journey from working in a silo to actively seeking mentorship and joining dedicated communities, revealing how these connections helped them avoid blind spots, gain crucial perspective, and accelerate their growth. Peter and Sei-Wook break down specific communities that have been instrumental to their journey, including Bureau of Digital, Society of Digital Agencies (SoDA), and Collective 54....

Why Agencies Rely on Referrals But Few Treat It as a System | EP18

The AgencyHabits Podcast

Most agencies say they rely on referrals, but few treat them as a system. In this episode, Peter Kang and Sei-Wook Kim dismantle the "hope-based" approach to referrals and lay out a strategic framework for building a consistent pipeline. Drawing from the book The Referral Code, they redefine referrals as a transfer of goodwill and share actionable tactics for intentional referral generation. Peter and Sei-Wook cover how to identify the right people to ask, the critical importance of timing your ask within a "state of appreciation," and how to craft effective, open-ended questions. They also...

The Six Levers of Profitable Client Engagements | EP17

The AgencyHabits Podcast

Profitability is the lifeblood of any agency, yet it can feel elusive. In this episode, Peter Kang and Sei-Wook Kim move beyond surface-level tips to reveal the six fundamental levers that directly impact the bottom line of every project, retainer, and service program. They break down how pricing, staffing, engagement design, scope management, reusable IP, and automation all interlock to create or erode healthy gross margins. Drawing from their experience across the Barrel Holdings portfolio, Peter and Sei-Wook share candid examples of where profitability leaks and provide a practical...

Scaling Your Agency Beyond $2M | EP 16

The AgencyHabits Podcast

In this episode, Peter Kang and Sei-Wook Kim dissect why agencies hit the $2M and what you can do to break through. They explain how founder-centric systems that work at a smaller scale become the primary constraint to growth, leading to breakdowns in client delivery, team management, and financial visibility. The hosts share actionable solutions, from improving onboarding and implementing debrief processes to strategically hiring for your weaknesses and deepening financial rigor. They also introduce the Agency Systems Playbook, a framework of five core systems that drive a scalable agency....

More Episodes

They then walk through nine of the most consequential risks agencies face, from founder burnout and partner misalignment to legal exposure, cash flow insolvency, client concentration, and strategic drift. For each, they share practical ways to reduce downside and increase the odds that the business survives unexpected shocks.

This episode is a reminder that resilience isn’t about eliminating uncertainty. It’s about designing an agency that can withstand it.

Key Moments

Defining Risk for Agencies – Risk as exposure to uncertainty that can materially impact the business.

The Risk Matrix – Prioritizing risks by likelihood and impact, and why high-impact risks deserve disproportionate attention.

Risk #1: Founder Burnout – Why founder health, compensation, and recovery are business-critical.

Risk #2: Partner Conflict & Misalignment – How unresolved tension between partners can destroy otherwise healthy agencies.

Risk #3: Key Person Dependency – The dangers of relying too heavily on a single individual for sales, delivery, or operations.

Risk #4: Client Legal & Delivery Exposure – How vague scopes, weak MSAs, and poor communication escalate disputes.

Risk #5: Employee Legal & Compliance Exposure – Why poor performance management and unclear policies create legal risk.

Risk #6: Business Continuity & Infrastructure Risk – Cybersecurity, data breaches, and operational interruptions.

Risk #7: Insolvency & Cash Flow Management – Why profitable agencies still fail without disciplined cash management.

Risk #8: Client Concentration – The compounding danger of over-reliance on a single client.

Risk #9: Strategic Misalignment – Betting on declining markets, trends, or ICPs and slowly capping growth.

Closing Thoughts – Risk management as a way to increase survival, not eliminate uncertainty.

Real Talk Takeaways

Most agencies don’t fail from one mistake, they fail from unmanaged high-impact risks compounding over time.
Founder burnout is a structural business risk, not a personal weakness.
Clear operating agreements and role definitions prevent partner conflict from becoming catastrophic.
Documentation, cross-training, and redundancy reduce key person dependency.
Tight MSAs, clear scopes, and early communication are the first line of defense against client disputes.
Poor performance management creates legal risk long before termination does.
Cash flow discipline matters more than profitability on paper.
Client concentration magnifies every other risk in the business.
Strategic choices compound slowly, but misalignment is one of the most dangerous long-term risks.