R/GA Australia leads the way with new ‘Distributed Creative’ model
As R/GA globally moves away from an office-centric model to a distributed creative model, this approach will enable R/GA and its clients to work with the best talent across the world, no matter where they are located. R/GA Australia is leading the way in this new model.
R/GA Australia understands its clients’ need for deep expertise across a range of areas and has invested significantly in specialised talent in its Products & Experiences offering, Connected Communications, and its newest practice Brand Design & Consulting. With centres of talent in Melbourne and Sydney, R/GA Australia has built a creative powerhouse that will help elevate the R/GA network, and the Australian advertising scene worldwide.
Says Michael Titshall, SVP managing director, Australia at R/GA: “We’ve accelerated the growth of expertise in our practices with talent on the front-line, rather than investing in rigid and expensive agency executive structures – which we all know has been a frustration of clients for years. Our model enables our best talent, regardless of geography, to work on client briefs and deliver these end-to-end. This has seen R/GA Australia export creative work to the world, with brands such as Nike, Timberland, and Samsung, rather than only the other way around.”
Says Victoria Curro, managing director, Sydney at R/GA: “This new model will enable us to become the essential partner for our clients. Our structure also allows R/GA Australia to innovate and create exciting work at the intersections of our practices as we’re all under one P&L structure. We’re set up to be a lead agency to design businesses and brands positioned for an integrated and more human future that goes beyond traditional broadcast.”
As R/GA approaches its ten-year milestone of operations in Australia, the agency’s core offerings operate in the connected practices of Brand Design & Consulting, Connected Communications, Product & Experience and Brand Relationship Design. Its clients in Australia include A-Leagues, Cotton On, Mecca, TPG Telecom, Nike, Reddit, Google and Toyota. The agency has 124 staff in integrated teams of creatives, strategists, technologists and designers. R/GA Australia has grown by 30% pre-pandemic and is set to grow by 30% again in 2023.
Says Sean Lyons, global chief executive officer, R/GA: “We are at our best when we are very intentional about our creative expertise. It’s easy for creative companies to get lost in the concept of integration without being an expert in the things you are trying to integrate. Our clients come to us for our deep expertise along with our ability to embrace where creativity and technology intersect. In our business technology is often used purely for efficiency when it has tremendous creative potential. This benefits not only our Australian clients but also global clients who rely on our talent here to bring their ingenuity and creativity to their work. Our new model, embracing distributed creativity, will only make this faster and easier.”
14 Comments
“Lead the way”, LOL!
It only took 2 years after the pandemic started, for the BIG agencies like RGA to see what the rest of us have known for over 10+ years, that you CAN work remotely and hire freelancers from overseas, and still be competitive and high-quality. No wait, let’s spin it even more… we can work with, gasp, THE WORLD’S BEST. Amazing revelation, RGA! Can we get the guy who runs the RGA twitter to comment on this? As that account is usually similarly scathing of such “spin”.
is a pretty interesting move if I am interpreting it correctly.
So, no offices, complete WFH for all permanent staff and remote contractor teams being assembled on a project basis?
Is that right RGA?
Stop the jargon.
You honestly don’t need it.Just talk to people in language they understand and you might find they listen more.
*** NEWSFLASH *** Big, cumbersome agency finally cottons on to what many of us have already been doing for the past 5 years.
I think you’re missing the point
Sure, some people (you perhaps) have always worked for themselves, and they’ve done so from wherever they are
But this is a large (not sure they warrant your cumbersome diss but ok) network owned global ad agency adopting a significantly new (for them and their industry) approach that will have a huge change on their entire operation.
It’s nothing to do with ‘cottonening on’
124 people?
Hardly big.
Don’t know about the cumbersome bit.
Where do you start with this?
Who are they trying to convince?
Themselves?
This is a brutal assault on people’s intelligence.
Stumbling across the fact that creatives aren’t coming into the office. Then announcing it as if it’s the second industrial revolution.
There are plenty of agencies that have had that as their business model for years and years and years.
And ‘deep expertise’? We’re in advertising. Our touch is light. Our opinions shallow.
Our mood blows with the wind. But this blow-hard, try-hard, clap-trap feels like the worst excess of ad-nonsense.
“In our business (missing a comma here – maybe the writers were too deeply involved with something else to notice) technology is often used purely for efficiency when it has tremendous creative potential.” What does that mean?
And this “Our new model, embracing distributed creativity, will only make this faster and easier.” So, having people all over the world, all zooming in, or co-contributing is easier than a couple of people in the room? Yeah. Nah.
But the best has to be saved for the presentation slide. Is this what passes for wisdom and mentoring? “I’d like to create a program that gives young ones options. Some kind of platform to celebrate their greatness, like the X-men HQ.” When words fail you, crass statements that even with the barest of scrutiny could uncover nothing of value pretending to be knowledge.
Let’s cut to the chase. If you’re a creative, what their telling you is your jobs are being offshored. Prove me wrong.
100%, spot on. This babble of poorly organised words from R/GA reads like it was supposed to be an internal email, that accidentally went to press. It’s trying so hard, but is utterly meaningless and vacous.
RGA coppin it
Some disgruntled ex employees/competitors for sure
Haters guna hate eh
Let’s build our business on bucks, not people and create no atmosphere, camaraderie or shared purpose. Nice work by the finance boffins. Bad luck to those creatives lost in the wind.
Anything to get a bold headline in campaign brief. So cheap. Maybe report on a groundbreaking idea instead? I mean who even cares about such a self centric restructuring of an outdated model. Advertising agencies are literally all stuck in 2005. In every way. A sinking ship.
‘We’re in advertising. Our touch is light. Our opinions shallow.’
offt
Not disgruntled employees. People not drinking the cool aid. This sort of stuff needs to be called out. If it looks like it, and smells like it, it is it…
none cares this much unless its driven by jealously and/or bitterness