Aussie indie agency Emotive hires former CHEP Australia CCO Gavin McLeod as first-ever CCO

Independent Australian agency Emotive has appointed Gavin McLeod as its first chief creative officer, McLeod, formerly CCO at CHEP Australia, who departed in March this year, has been working with the agency in recent months before officially stepping into the role this week.

McLeod will be teamed with Head of Earned Creative Jessica Cluff, who joined Emotive from Poem in April this year.

Says McLeod, in a LinkedIn post to announce the move: “A couple of weeks in and I’m already loving the chance to work with such a talented bunch of people, both in the agency and among our clients. The ambition is clear: to create ideas that change how people feel about brands. The freedom that comes with independence isn’t bad either, especially when the office is right on the beach.”

McLeod has over 20 years of experience fostering creative and collaborative cultures at some of the world’s most innovative creative agencies. Prior to joining CHEP, McLeod spent over two years at Ogilvy Sydney serving as ECD. Prior to joining Ogilvy Sydney in June 2019, McLeod was ECD at AKQA San Francisco.

At AKQA he led a 65+ interdisciplinary team, dedicated to delivering breakthrough creative and technology innovation for some of the world’s best-known brands including Audi, Activision Blizzard, IBM Watson and Levi’s. Prior to joining AKQA at the end of 2016, McLeod was responsible for opening the Sydney office of R/GA, where he pitched and won work with Telstra, ANZ Bank, Macquarie Bank, Nike, Samsung, Toyota, Coke and Google. ​He has also held creative leadership positions at TBWA Australia where he was ECD from March 2011 and M&C Saatchi Sydney where he rose to ECD digital and direct.

The appointment reflects Emotive’s growth beyond its long-standing creative director collective model, as the agency continues to expand its leadership structure.