“I gravitated to Clockwork because the company has an ambitious, start-up mentality that I love,” says Jacques. “There’s more hunger and more appetite to take a few calculated risks, and I appreciate the autonomy that comes with that. From the beginning, I knew the values and chemistry were right. I’m also excited to get to work on some pretty phenomenal brands.”
Jacques’ most recent role as executive creative director (ECD) at Publicis Groupe saw him merge multidisciplinary teams from Nestle, Beiersdorf, and Visa into one creative department. He enjoyed pulling people from different disciplines to build a collective craft and instilling responsibility and collaboration from the start. Before his tenure at Publicis Groupe, he held the position of ECD at Wunderman Thompson South Africa (formerly Cerebra). Earlier in his career, he served as the creative director at The Jupiter Drawing Room.
Jacques is looking forward to getting to know the Clockwork team and bringing his own learnings to the company. “There’s a lot that’s already working, but a fresh perspective is always helpful,” he says. “For me, it’ll be about getting to know how Clockwork moves, while slowly starting to push things in a direction that produces better, faster, more crafted work. I’ve got a lot of experience managing multiple teams from various locations, which helps in today’s hybrid work model. I’m keen to work with people who are as curious and aberrant as me.”
Over the years, Jacques has been recognised for his achievements in the industry. He won his first Loerie award in 2004 and has since become a highly decorated name in the business. Between 2014 and 2016 alone, he received over 20 awards, including Loeries, Cannes awards, D&AD and Creative Circle Ad of the Year. A key element of his success is the ability to understand creativity from a business perspective. “It makes you a better business partner for your clients,” he says.
Tom Manners, co-CEO at Clockwork, is excited for the new addition to the team: “Jacques is a proven creative leader whose approach gels perfectly with our culture as an agency. We’re really looking forward to getting stuck in together with a view towards making our work even more impactful and effective.”
