Directive vs Kalungi: Which One Fits Your Team?

Directive vs Kalungi: Which One Fits Your Team?

Directive fits B2B teams seeking support across Performance, Commerce, and Communications, with an emphasis on breadth across channels and customer touchpoints. Kalungi fits teams seeking marketing leadership and execution together: its Full Service engagement includes an Associate CMO, an execution team, and a go-to-market operating system with accountability for growth.

By Rishabh Ambasta, Founder, Modern Inbound.

Quick comparison

What Directive offers

Directive organizes its B2B offering into Performance, Commerce, and Communications divisions, presenting these together as coverage across channels, platforms, and touchpoints. That breadth makes Directive a relevant option when your brief spans several parts of your marketing activity. Start by identifying the work you want an agency to own, then map that work to the proposed engagement.

Directive also describes serving clients in the B2B and enterprise space. For a buyer in either category, that stated focus gives a useful starting point for evaluating fit. Bring a clear description of your audience, buying process, and internal responsibilities to the selection process. Ask for a scope that connects each proposed activity to a business objective you can explain to your team.

Another strength in Directive's stated approach is testing tactics before recommending them to clients. If testing discipline matters to your selection, Directive's emphasis on that process is relevant. Ask how a proposed tactic would be evaluated for your circumstances, what information would guide the decision, and when you would review the work together.

What Kalungi offers

Kalungi's Full Service engagement brings together an Associate CMO, a full execution team, a go-to-market operating system, and accountability for growth. Its strength is the combination of leadership and delivery within the same offering. For buyers, the practical question is how much responsibility they want to place with an external team.

Kalungi positions Full Service as one accountable team replacing multiple hires. That framing makes it relevant to a buyer comparing an integrated external team with building several roles internally. Before choosing an arrangement, write down the responsibilities you need covered. Include planning, execution, review, and the decisions that will stay with your own leadership.

The published cost of Kalungi's Full Service engagement is $50,000+/month. Use that figure when deciding whether to evaluate this specific engagement. In a proposal review, ask for the exact scope, responsibilities, and commercial terms so your budget decision matches the work you intend to commission.

Who Directive fits

Consider Directive when your B2B brief calls for support across its Performance, Commerce, and Communications divisions. Its stated B2B and enterprise client focus also makes it relevant to teams evaluating an agency for those markets. A useful selection brief should explain where you need help, who owns the overall marketing direction, and which activities require external execution.

For this choice, focus your assessment on scope. List the customer touchpoints you want included and ask which proposed activities address each one. Identify dependencies on your internal team before signing an engagement. For related reading while preparing your brief, see how to evaluate a lead generation agency.

Who Kalungi fits

Consider Kalungi when you want an Associate CMO and an execution team together, supported by a go-to-market operating system and growth accountability. Its Full Service positioning is particularly relevant when you are weighing one accountable external team against multiple hires. Make the responsibility split explicit so everyone understands which decisions require your approval.

For this choice, focus your assessment on ownership. Write down who will set direction, approve priorities, review progress, and coordinate with internal stakeholders. Compare that desired arrangement with the proposed scope. Related reading includes done-for-you versus done-with-you lead generation and the ICP definition framework.

How we compared

This comparison is based on each company's own public pages as of October 2026.

We used Directive's services page for its division structure, its global expansion article for its stated B2B and enterprise client focus, and its about page for its emphasis on testing tactics. We used Kalungi's Full Service page for its leadership and execution package, its team replacement positioning, and its published engagement cost.

Frequently asked questions

What are Directive's service divisions?

Directive's service divisions are Performance, Commerce, and Communications, covering channels, platforms, and touchpoints for B2B brands.

What does Kalungi Full Service include?

Kalungi Full Service includes an Associate CMO, a full execution team, a go-to-market operating system, and accountability for growth.

How much does Kalungi Full Service cost?

Kalungi publishes a Full Service engagement cost of $50,000+/month.

Does Directive test tactics before recommending them?

Directive states that it tests tactics before recommending them to clients.

How we researched this

Sources:

• directiveconsulting.com/services
• www.kalungi.com/services/full-service
• directiveconsulting.com/about
• directiveconsulting.com/blog/directive-plans-global-expansion-with-business-intelligence-platform-powered-by-sisense

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