Former Saatchi & Saatchi executive creative director Steve Back will return to Australian shores next year as Ogilvy Australia's chief creative officer.
Back will relocate to Melbourne to oversee all creative output for Ogilvy Australia. The national creative role is newly-formed. Former executive chairman Tom Moult had briefly considered appointing a national chief creative officer before abandoning the idea.
Ogilvy Australia chief executive Andrew Baxter said: “Steve is one of the region's most renowned creatives and we are incredibly excited to have him join the Ogilvy Australia team. His broad experience on big brands and proven success with campaigns that really work for clients will be a great asset to our already strong creative team.”
Back has spent the past two years as chief creative officer of Ogilvy Singapore. Prior to that, he was executive creative director at Saatchi & Saatchi in Sydney, where he replaced the departing David Nobay. He's also worked for DDB Sydney, Saatchi & Saatchi New Zealand, Leo Burnett Sydney and Marketforce Perth.
Baxter added: “Our creative prowess has grown substantially during the past 12 months, and with Back joining the team, we will have the depth and strength to make 2013 an incredible year of creativity for Ogilvy Australia.”
Back said: “I'm really excited to be joining Andrew and the team in Australia. They've really hit their stride in the last 12 months with campaigns like 'Share a Coke'. I'm looking forward to contributing to the agency's continued success.”
During Back's tenure at the helm of Singapore's creative offering, the office was ranked the number one in the Ogilvy network. He's worked with brands including Tooheys New, Toyota and Sony.
Ogilvy's Sydney executive creative director is Brett Howlett while Melbourne executive creative director Richard Ralphsmith departed the agency in August.
Back starts in February.
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