My signature was barely dry on the employment contract and I had not yet even set foot in the Edelman UK business and when Richard Edelman said: “I think we need to buy that JCPR agency. Go and see them”.… Continue Reading
Every few years Singapore Airlines puts its creative agency brief out and each time I feel a pang. Big brands you think you once did important work for are a bit like ex-girlfriends; you’ve moved on but you’re a tiny… Continue Reading
In the last few weeks, both Ketchum and Ogilvy have gone to considerable trouble to re-organise their businesses around new visions of what they believe the market and clients demand. They won’t be the last. But why bother, given that… Continue Reading
The recent publication of the global PR rankings from the Holmes Report confirmed last years’ trend that the big agencies have stalled and had me pondering why? Weber-Shandwick, Ketchum, Burson-Marsteller and Ogilvy are all down. Of the top eight only… Continue Reading
I have a new role as an Independent Non-Executive Director on the Board of Enero Group. I’m very much looking forward to working with John Porter and the board and Matt and the teams in some brilliant businesses around the… Continue Reading
Sir Martin Sorrell is marketing Marmite, but the type of Marmite 90% seem to hate and 10% just grudgingly respect. What everyone who has a view seems to agree, is that he has changed the industry (*). His departure has… Continue Reading
A book on technology is out of date the minute the final draft manuscript is sent to the publishers. So, we revisit Crowdsurfing, the book we co-wrote 10 years ago, with a degree of nervousness. Have our comments, analysis and predictions stood… Continue Reading
I’m in the parking business. The obvious extension of a career in PR really. For the last few months I have been an Advisory Board Member and investor in Parkable, which is a bit like AirBnB for parking spaces. We… Continue Reading
Twenty years ago I was working at Burson-Marsteller London which was then a 240 person office with an in-house creative agency, a research arm and access to heavyweight brand data. It was the only agency with a properly defined practice… Continue Reading
Since leaving Edelman, I have been very lucky to be working with an amazingly talented group at The Spinoff as an Advisory Board Member. The Spinoff was launched in 2014 and is New Zealand’s fastest growing online media brand producing… Continue Reading