Devon MacDonald

Thought Profile

Devon MacDonald

President & Co-Owner
Cairns Oneil

Generative AIContent StrategyAI and QualityClient EducationAI Adoption
01 The leader in brief

Devon MacDonald emphasizes practical, incremental adoption of generative AI to accelerate media and content workflows while maintaining human creativity. The agency reworked its internal processes into an agentic suite and uses AI for headline creation but avoids AI-generated visuals when people are involved to protect quality. Devon frames AI as an accelerant that frees teams to focus on deeper problems rather than a tool for reducing headcount.

“I would tell them that they just need to start.”
02 Three ideas worth following
01

Agentic suite for media workflows

Re-design internal processes into an agentic suite to operationalize generative AI where it delivers immediate value, for example using AI for headline creation while avoiding AI-generated visuals of people to maintain quality and resonance.

Generative AI
02

Build credibility and AI literacy publicly

Maintain discoverability through owned content like podcasts and social media and use public recognition, while helping clients and teams develop AI literacy so they do not arrive with biased prompts or incorrect AI-driven conclusions.

Client Education
03

Start small and treat AI as an accelerant

Isolate manageable use cases to mitigate risk and create immediate opportunities, and position AI as a way to accelerate work so staff can focus on deeper problems rather than as a means to cut headcount.

AI Adoption
03 Company in brief

Cairns Oneil

Cairns Oneil is a full-service, independent media agency built for impact. The firm offers a strategic planning system called Awaken, a buying system called Orbit and a content orchestration product called Catalyst Studio, and states it serves ambitious brands in Canada with strategy, planning, buying and analytics powered by a 100% in-house team.

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04 Key takeaways
  1. Rebuild internal processes into agentic systems and apply generative AI where it improves output, but avoid AI-generated visuals involving people to protect content quality.
  2. Stay visible through owned content and public recognition, and invest in AI literacy for clients and staff to avoid biased or incorrect use of AI.
  3. Begin with small, isolated AI projects to reduce risk and view AI as an accelerant that creates time for deeper work rather than as a headcount reducer.

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