The Red Pen Started It. 24 Years of Agency Work Built It.
I'm Francis Skipper. Former chef. Former chemist. 24-year agency veteran who's been on every side of the table.
I started inside the holding company machine — WPP, iProspect back when it was Aegis — working across agencies as a digital mercenary. I had 10 different business cards depending on who I was pitching for that week. I learned how big shops operate, where they bleed money, and why most of them can't get out of their own way.
Then I went smaller. Founded a boutique agency. Spent a decade as a partner at another. Built teams, managed P&Ls, won pitches, lost pitches, and learned more from the losses. Eventually I started Points South Consulting — my own shop, run on my own terms.
SFW:Unlocked is what came out of all of it. Twenty-four years of watching smart people do unfocused work, and asking the same question every time: So fing what?* The framework became a system. The system became a book. And now it's the filter behind every AI tool I build for agencies..
Book drops late spring: stay up to date on the book and the SFW:Unlocked Weekly Newsletter on Substack.
SFW: "SO F***ING WHAT?"
It started as a red pen across a 46-slide deck full of numbers with no point. Too many words. Zero meaning. The pen didn't make it bold. The truth did.
That moment became a framework. The framework became a system. The system became a book. And along the way, it became the filter I run everything through — every strategy, every AI tool, every recommendation — before it goes out the door.
SFW isn't about being clever or contrarian. It's about accountability. It's the question that separates work that matters from work that just looks like work.
THE FRAMEWORK WORKS BEYOND THE OFFICE, TOO.
The SFW framework started in agencies. But the question "so what does this mean and what do we do about it?" doesn't stop at marketing decks.
It applies to how you lead teams. How you make decisions under pressure. How you communicate when the stakes are high. How you build a career — and a life — that isn't just busy.
The book goes there. The agency work stays focused. But the framework is built for anyone who wants to stop doing things that don't matter.
24+ Years in Agency Operations
Strategy, media, ops, digital — from inside the building.
SFW:Unlocked — The Book
25,000 words. Nine frameworks. Coming Summer 2026.
15+ AI Systems in Production
Content, research, reporting, BD — running right now.
Points South Consulting
A digital agency running for 20+ years. The proving ground for everything SFW.