Wieden+Kennedy announces major organisational changes at global level

Kim Papworth and Karrelle Dixon have been appointed to oversee the company's emerging markets, in new roles as Executive Creative Director and Managing Director

BestMediaInfo Bureau | Mumbai | October 19, 2016

(L) Kim Papworth and Karrelle Dixon (R)

Wieden+Kennedy announced strategic changes to its organisational structure, including a new global stakeholder group, and a new leadership team to oversee the agency's emerging markets.

The agency has announced that Kim Papworth and Karrelle Dixon will oversee the company's emerging markets in new roles as Executive Creative Director, Emerging Markets and Managing Director, Emerging Markets, respectively. Reporting directly to Global President Dave Luhr and Global Chief Creative Officer Colleen DeCourcy, Dixon and Papworth will be based in London while spending time in W+K's Tokyo, Shanghai and Delhi offices.

Dave Luhr and Colleen DeCourcy

Commenting on the appointment, Luhr said, “Along with our creativity and independence, the W+K network is a key strength of this agency. Our offices in Tokyo, Shanghai and Delhi are well positioned for future growth. Allowing Kim and Karrelle to focus on these markets will help drive that momentum even quicker.”

Previously, Dixon was the Global Account Director for the agency's largest (and foundational) account, Nike, based in Portland, OR. Karrelle joined W+K London in 2006 as an account manager on Nike and other agency brands.

Papworth was Executive Creative Director for W+K London for 15 years, during which the agency created celebrated campaigns for Nike, Honda and Nokia, among others.

DeCourcy added, “These two are the best example of W+K's belief in the power of partnership. Karrelle's incredible energy and curious mind are perfectly met by Kim's quiet power and indelible legacy of timeless creative work. I've got high expectations. It's going to be fun to watch.”

Dan Wieden

Dan Wieden, Founder and Chairman, Wieden + Kennedy, said, “I am so damn proud of this place. We started as a ship of fools, and that, I quite firmly believe is why we have succeeded for almost 35 years. But I really never thought we would be talking about the next 35. The hope is always that the next generation does better than the one before them. I think under the leadership of Dave and Colleen, and this inspiring group of new stakeholders, we just might be onto something."

As the company approaches its 35th birthday (in April 2017), Luhr and DeCourcy saw a need to reshape agency leadership to position W+K successfully for the next 35 years. They have added 15 new members to the current nine-person partner group, which has been renamed to more accurately represent the leaders' role in the future of the agency. This leadership team will now be called Wieden+Kennedy Stakeholders.

Luhr said, “Our current nine-person partner group is based on a model we've outgrown. That group doesn't reflect the breadth of perspective and skills we want to see in the next generation of leaders, and the next, and the next. Given the size and complexity of the agency, we need more decision-makers representing more offices, more disciplines and different voices. Our leadership needs to be a bigger and better reflection of the agency we have become.”

DeCourcy said, “We are focused on making work that is culturally relevant and influential, and that lives across more places and channels. We are rethinking what 'work' is, embarking on unexpected collaborations, and seeking to grow in interesting, smart ways. This group is charged with pushing us further down these roads and others we haven't even considered."

She further said, "In addition to making extraordinary work, this group exhibits, in abundance, qualities valued by W+K: creativity, inspiration, collaboration, leadership, vision and passion. They are leaders, focused on growing opportunities for the next generation of this place."

The W+K stakeholder group includes Wieden, Luhr, DeCourcy, Dixon, Claudia Valderrama, Chief Financial Officer, Neil Christie, Managing Director, W+K, London, Tony Davidson, Executive Creative Director, W+K, London and a few more people.

Wieden+Kennedy, founded in Portland, Oregon, in 1982, is an independent, privately held global creative company with offices in Amsterdam, Delhi, London, New York City, Portland, São Paulo, Shanghai and Tokyo. Wieden+Kennedy has helped build some of the strongest global brands, including AB InBev, Coca-Cola, Delta Air Lines, ESPN, Honda, Nike, Procter & Gamble and Verizon.

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