Andrew Scott departs Whybin\TBWA after eight years, hints at future project with Scott Whybin
Scott
Whybin\TBWA Melbourne chief executive officer Andrew Scott has departed the agency after nearly eight years, with the agency’s managing director Kimberlee Wells promoted to the CEO role.
Speaking to Mumbrella on his decision to leave the agency after eight years Scott said: “I’m a builder not a person that stands sentry duty and we’ve done some amazing things over eight years which is build the agency and we’ve brought on some amazing talent and great new clients and we’ve done really well creatively.
“That’s always been my ambition: get some revenue, get some talent and then win awards. We’ve done all three of those things over the last eight years.
“I’m a builder, it’s what Scott [Whybin] asked me to do eight years ago, you get to the stage and you go the job’s done and it’s ready to hand over to the next people and take it to the next level. I want to build something else.”
During his time with the agency Scott guided it through an expansion with a re-focus on creative work. According to the agency, staff numbers went from 38 to 110, with the agency picking up clients such as ANZ Bank, McCain and Medibank.
Last year the agency struck gold with the GayTMs campaign for ANZ, glamming up several cash machines in Sydney’s CBD as part of the bank’s sponsorship of the Mardi Gras. The campaign won public acclaim and numerous creative awards around the world.
In the past four years, working alongside Whybin\TBWA chairman and regional executive director of the agency Scott Whybin, he brought in Paul Reardon as ECD, Mike Napolitano as lead of the Nissan business and Ricci Meldrum to run the ANZ business throughout Asia-Pacific as well as hiring his successor Kimberlee Wells.
Scott remained coy on his next venture, only hinting he was looking at a number of opportunities with friend and colleague and agency founder Scott Whybin.
“We’ve got a couple of things Scott and I are working on. Scott and I have become close friends over eight years, I’m probably the longest serving person with Scott in his life. There’s a whole lot of opportunities we can see out there in the market place and we’re still working on those.”
Scott first joined Whybin\TBWA in Melbourne as managing director in January 2008, a role he held for just over three and a half years before taking on the CEO role. Previously Scott was the general manager for Saatchi & Saatchi NZ and was the MD of the now defunct Draft FCB in Melbourne.
Whybin, chairman of the group, said in a statement: “He’s not only one of the best CEOs I’ve ever worked with. He’s also one of my best friends. Of course, I’m unhappy about him leaving but I truly understand and respect his personal reasons for doing so.”
Wells
Wells joined Whybin\TBWA initially to establish the agency’s CRM offering with a focus on engagement planning, a role which was expanded into overseeing the agency’s total digital offering.
She then took on the executive director/managing director role in February 2013. Previous to Whybin\TBWA she was the general manager of M&C Saatchi’s digital and direct arm Mark.
On his successor Scott said: “What Kimberlee is brilliant at is digital. Over the last four years, she’s brought digital to the centre of the agency and we’ve changed the agency quite remarkably in the last eight years, bringing in other offerings like the social lab, shopper marketing and the mobile phone lab. Kimberlee is the right sort of person to take that to the next level. I don’t want to stand in those people’s way.”
Wells credited the agency’s success to the foundation built by Scott.
“Success needs a solid foundation and that’s a credit to Andrew and what he achieved in the last eight years in the business, we just have to build on it,” she said.
Whybin\TBWA Melbourne general manager Michael Napolitano is stepping up into the MD role vacated by Wells as part of Scott’s succession plan which has been in the planning stages for the last 12 months.
“We’ve spent the last 12 months working on the succession plan. People like Kimberlee, Paul Reardon and Nappa and the guys in strategy we’ve brought on board – that group of people, we’ve always had a very flat structure so to be able to walk away and have a succession plan in place is quite satisfying,” said Scott.
Miranda Ward
Miranda Ward worked for Mumbrella from 2013 to 2017, eventually becoming deputy editor. Miranda joined Mumbrella in September 2013 from Sky News.
Linkedin
congratulations Kimberlee!
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Andrew ‘Scotty Scott’ is a great leader and a great believer in creativity. I’ve had the privilege of collaborating with him for years. He’s a rare talent and i’ll genuinely miss him. Good luck Scotty and good luck Kimbo.
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