Kurt Novack joins Ogilvy Malaysia as Group Executive Creative Director and Nizwani Shahar and Campbell Cannon promoted to Co-Chief Executives

Ogilvy has announced a new management lineup in Malaysia. Ogilvy veterans Nizwani Shahar and Campbell Cannon have been promoted to Co-Chief Executives, whilst Kurt Novack has joined the office as Group Executive Creative Director.

Ogilvy has strengthened its leadership in Malaysia with Kurt Novack joining the team as Group Executive Creative Director.

Kurt (pictured above), who is from Chicago, USA, is not new to Ogilvy, having worked with the network in 2010 where he helped create one of the most diverse groups of creative expertise at Ogilvy in Paris. With user-experience, creative technologists and traditional advertising creatives mixed with a newly created team of data experts, the results were innovative. He has lived in the US and Russia, and more recently has called France his home.

Shahar and Cannon said, “Kurt is an exceptional creative leader and we’re thrilled to have him join our executive leadership in Malaysia. These are exciting times ahead, and we’re very much looking forward to continuing our charge to put Malaysia on the map when it comes to world-class modern marketing solutions for brands”.

Shahar and Campbell’s promotions represent important continuity for the office, and have been tasked with driving Ogilvy Malaysia’s next phase of growth and creative leadership. They will report to Kent Wertime, Co-Chief Executive for Ogilvy in Asia.

“Nizwani and Campbell have a combined tenure of more than 22 years with our business, and bring together passion and experience across local, regional, and global brands. They are fantastic Ogilvy ambassadors and have the full support of our network when it comes to their ability to lead our business forward,” said Wertime.

Shaha (pictured above right) joined Ogilvy Malaysia in 2011, proving to be a force of nature in delivering growth for clients while she was lead on Nestle and in guiding the agency through its win of the CIMB business. Her strong foundation in account management and strategy has seen her raise the bar of creativity in marketing, making her a strong and positive influence for female leaders in the workplace.

“David Ogilvy famously said that agencies that are full of fun and ferment, create the best advertising. I am honored to deliver on this vision in today’s world of modern marketing with Campbell and our leadership team. We are undoubtedly passionate about creativity being our distinguisher, technology being our accelerator and our talent being our greatest assets to deliver on our client’s growth.” said Nizwani.

Cannon (pictured above  left) has been with Ogilvy for 14 years, starting his career with the agency in Sydney, Australia, followed by a three-year tenure at Ogilvy in New York. He moved to Malaysia in 2013 and has held regional leadership roles across key clients such as Mondelez, The Coca-Cola Company, and Kimberly Clark, as well as an array of Malaysia based clients such as U Mobile, and Heineken Brands.

Cannon said, “It’s truly invigorating to be asked to lead the agency with Nizwani. It’s an exciting time to partner with our diverse and pervasively creative leadership team, and with our more simplified and integrated structure, we’re more client-centric in the way we address the totality of a modern brand and its needs. Quite simply, we are perfectly placed to aim for the remarkable!”.