Early in the 1980's, Chiat discovered that he enjoyed being an entrepreneur more than he enjoyed editing and writing ads. He relinquished the position of Creative Director to Lee Clow and took on a more managerial posture. This movement in responsibilities allowed Chiat to focus on expanding the agency nationally as well as drum up new business. Lee Clow, who by the end of the decade would be regarded as the single most influential working creative in the country, would develop the campaigns for which Chiat/Day would become famous. The relationship would prove fruitful for the agency. Chiat prodded Clow into creating work that he called "breakthrough creative"- ads that were both entertaining and strategically sound. Clow took on a nurturing role within the agency, keeping the workforce together when Chiat displayed his famous temper. (p. 35.)

Like many agencies, Chiat/Day established its reputation with strong print advertising. But it was the agency's television work in the 1980’s that defined its reputation for being able to create what Chiat himself called, "the big idea." (Stabiner, 1993, p. 320.) It was Chiat/Day’s work for three clients that epitomized their achievements in the 1980’s: Apple Computer, Nike and Energizer.

In 1984, Apple Computer was set to launch a revolutionary new computer called the Macintosh. Steve Jobs, founder of Apple and one whose temperament and personality was very much like his friend Jay Chiat’s, wanted a commercial that was as revolutionary as the product itself. What Apple got was a 60-second commercial that was "the single biggest splash in the history of television advertising." (Malone, 1998, p. 274.)

The commercial, directed by famous film director Ridley Scott, aired to a national audience only once- during the half-time of the 1984 Super Bowl. The commercial was a direct homage to George Orwell’s book, "1984." Mindless drones marched to the sound of a menacing speech. The oration was intoned by a Big Brother-esque character that loomed over the imprisoned audience on an oversized screen. The speech was intercut with shots of a woman carrying a sledgehammer running towards the screen, chased by security guards. Finally, the woman stopped in front of the blue glow of the screen and with an impassioned cry released the sledgehammer, shattering it into a thousand pieces of glass. The voice-over followed, "On January 24, Apple Computer will introduce Macintosh. And you'll see why 1984 won’t be like 1984." (p. 275)

The commercial was so astounding that it caused one of the on-air Super Bowl announcers to say, "Wow, what was that?"(p. 275.) That was an advertising sensation. Unlike most commercials that come and go with little fanfare, "1984" left a permanent impact on the advertising industry. The commercial, which never aired again to a national audience, single-handedly turned the Super Bowl of football into the Super Bowl of advertising. Each year, agencies across the country spend millions of dollars in production and air time to try and equal the impact of "1984." (McCarthy, 1998, p. 178.) Ultimately, the spot went on to be the first American commercial to win the Grand Prix award at the Cannes advertising competition. (Malone, 1998, p. 276.) More recently, Advertising Age said unequivocally that it was "the best commercial ever made." Not bad for a spot that Apple's board of directors almost pulled at the last second. (McCarthy, 1998, p. 178.)

Later that year, Chiat/Day enjoyed a similar success with their campaign for Nike during the Los Angeles Summer Olympics. Chiat/Day bought space on the walls of large buildings in major cities across the United States. On that space was painted portraits of athletes with a very simple Nike logo in the corner. There was no overt sales pitch or promise. The outdoor blitz was accompanied by a commercial with singer Randy Newman belting "I Love L.A." intercut with shots of prominent Olympic athletes. The results of the campaign were astounding. By the end of the Olympics, most Americans believed that Nike was the official shoe company of the Summer Games, a title that had been purchased for millions of dollars by Converse. (Stabiner, 1993, p. 48.) As Lee Clow wrote in 1998, "...you began to feel that advertising could be art... Nike took over Los Angeles for the '84 Olympics (not by paying to be the official anything but by just doing it)." (Clow, 1998, p. 152.)

Despite the success of these campaigns, both Apple and Nike left the agency within one week of each other in 1986. Apple had a new CEO who wanted to turn over the account to his favorite agency, BBDO. Nike left, complaining that Chiat/Day was not as strong with creating marketing strategies as it was with creating "big ideas." (Deveny et. al., 1987, p. 70.) Jay Chiat quickly rebounded, personally overseeing a pitch for Nissan Motors. The $150 million dollar account was awarded to Chiat/Day and catapulted the agency into the top 25 biggest agencies in the United States. (p. 70.)

The final Chiat/Day creative coup of the 1980’s was the campaign for Energizer batteries. The television campaign featured a battery powered stuffed bunny who banged his drum through a series of parody commercials. The campaign was a hit, spawning a myriad of executions as well as receiving a great deal of media acclaim. (p. 296.) The concept had remarkable staying power as well. TBWA/Chiat/Day (as the agency is now known) is still turning out commercials featuring the pink stuffed animal. "The campaign was designed to become stronger over time. The longer it runs, the stronger the point about the product's attribute," remarked Creative Director Dick Sittig. (Dawson, 1998, p. 186.)

The campaign was a fitting end of the decade for Jay Chiat. In 1989, he accepted Advertising Age’s "Agency of the Decade" on behalf of the company he built into a national force. However, it was to be a short lived victory. The early 1990's would prove to be very difficult for the advertising industry- especially for it's newly crowned leader.