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New appointment announcement: Neal Farrell, MD of Publicis Machine Cape Town
In 2012, I took the leap from the safety of my position as a salaried employee, to co-found content marketing start-up Narrative. I had been in owned media publishing for two decades and every-where you looked, content marketing was a hot agenda item. As someone who has always leaned towards starting up new ventures, I knew that it would be wise to do this where the market trend was up. Some five years later, Narrative is a successful specialist agency within the Publicis Machine stable.
What has your role been leading up to your appointment as Managing Director?
After winning our first big retainer, Sanlam Reality, we quickly moved into recruitment phase. We had just one client: a blue-chip client that came with a big retainer and the pressure was on to deliver. So, we recruited the best people we knew, to ensure that we delighted from day one. Later on, I took on some additional executive responsibility within the group to lead our research specialist division, Answered Insights.
How are you enjoying your new role?
Love it! There is so much opportunity and so much excitement. I actually found myself, chomping at the bit during a recent two-week break, wanting to get back and get involved. It’s exactly the challenge I needed just when I needed it and I am truly humbled by the positive response so far.
What is your vision for taking Publicis Machine in to the future?- Leadership:
firstly, to lead, not manage, and in doing so to ensure that we build an empowered, confident and “never afraid” team of interconnected people. I like to think of creating a movement with momentum, where our team drives the business forward, not management. When you get leadership right, you create unstoppable momentum.The agency’s six-year existence has been nothing short of a great success story and we will future proof the agency and continue on the next growth trajectory, by staying true to this simple eight-point plan. With this, I believe we have a highly workable format to take Publicis Machine, Cape Town to the next level of success.
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