Former JWT heavyweights share their fondest moments in the agency

WPP stunned the industry this week by merging one of the oldest creative ad agencies, J. Walter Thompson (JWT), with 60-year-old digital network Wunderman to form Wunderman Thompson.JWT was initially founded in 1864 as Carlton and Smith and was later purchased by James Walter Thompson. The agency first started selling advertising space in religious journals and was later renamed in 1878 to JWT. In 1969, JWT became a public corporation and was reorganised in 1980 to form a new holding company named JWT Group. Seven years later, it became part of the WPP Group. Some of its work include Tencent's "Give us the time of a song", Kleenex's "Tiny Doll", KitKat's "Delayed Flight Machine", Coca Cola's "Fan Feat", Stop Ivory's "Going, going, gone" and #HeForShe's "Projected Expectations".While the fate of many of those working in the agency remains in limbo following the merger, Marketing speaks to industry players to share their fondest memories of working at JWT.(Read also: Wunderman Thompson merger: Why you shouldn’t panic yet)Name: Tom DoctoroffCurrent position: Senior partner at Prophet SELast position at JWT: CEO of Asia PacificDoctoroff spent 24 years with the agency, helming the role of CEO of Asia Pacific before leaving. He told Marketing that by far, his most rewarding time was when he was managing director of JWT Shanghai from 1998 to 2001."We had a unified team, with a fundamental belief in the power of strategic creativity. There was no cynicism. We were pure. We became known as the 'temple of advertising'," he said. Doctoroff added that he was also very proud when the team won mainland China's first Cannes Grand Prix for Samsonite.Doctoroff added that "until the final couple of years", the agency had a culture that accepted idiosyncratic people who had strong points of view.We were intellectually curious. We were never “cool.” But we were smart and had lots of heart.Read also:Prophet gets ex-JWT APAC CEO Tom Doctoroff on boardJWT’s Asia CEO Tom Doctoroff exits, agency names new leadName: Valerie MadonCurrent position: Chairperson of Havas Group Singapore, chief creative officer of Havas Group SEA and global creative lead on GSKLast position at JWT: Chief creative officerMadon, who last held the chief creative officer role at JWT, said her best memory working there was when the team won Singapore Tourism Board, Changi Airport and Central Provident Fund. She left at the end of 2015 after five years, and said she enjoyed working on the Shell account, where she was the global ECD for Shell lubricants. She told Marketing that the working culture at JWT is "very easy going despite being big".I learnt a lot when I got to work with the London team. They know how to build great brands and it shows through the talents I met.Read also:JWT’s Valerie Cheng takes on global dutiesAfter Hours: Valerie Madon Cheng’s LicktionaryName: Ivan Hady WibowoCurrent position: CEO of Flock IndonesiaLast position at JWT: Chief creative officer at JWT IndonesiaPrior to starting up Flock, Ivan Hady Wibowo was the chief creative officer at JWT Jakarta. According to him, his fondest memory was when it won the Agency of the Year thrice in a row. "That was really a morale boost when we had just lost a big account. We recovered a lot faster," he told Marketing.Meanwhile, he also described the culture to be "creative-driven".Even my CEO and account managers were brainstorming ideas. I really loved it!Read also: Meet the CEOs: Flock Indonesia’s Ivan Hady WibowoJWT Jakarta’s chief creative officer exits the companyName: Tay Guan HinCurrent position: Founder of TGH Collective and change architect at APAC Global AdvisoryLast position at JWT: Regional ECD at JWT Southeast AsiaPreviously the global executive creative director at JWT for the Lux brand, Tay said working at the agency was "one of the best times of [his] career".The agency culture was always nurturing yet constantly creatively stimulating.Also, being a member of the global creative council gave Tay a sense of belonging and purpose, as it allowed him to help grow the network by creating work that was well-loved and respected within the industry."JWT created a strong network of talented individuals that I have grown to admire and love over the years," he told Marketing. Tay added that until this day, those who have left JWT continue to remain close friends. This was a result of the biannual Sam Meek training leadership workshop organised by JWT Asia Pacific.The managment team would role play various agencies' models to pitch against one another. Tay said he has fond memories playing a tough client, simulating challenging business scenarios for his colleagues to solve. "I had fun organising an awards night during the week to help foster friendly competition. Strong bonds were built between each office," he added.Read also:JWT veteran creative Tay Guan Hin exits after 13 years to join AGACreative Catch-Up: JWT’s Tay Guan HinName: Joji JacobCurrent position: Co-founder and group ECD at BLKJLast position at JWT: Head of copyJacob told Marketing that JWT was the first agency he worked at in Singapore, and like one's first love, it has a very special place in his heart.We were a small, tight-knit group of people who worked hard during the day and played Game of War all night."Although we were a handful of people, the agency punched way above its weight in those days. We won the Singapore Creative Circle Grand Prix twice while I was there, and I travelled the world on work on the JWT dime," he said.His fondest memories spending five years at the agency are of the people and the smallest things, such as taking over the now defunct Union Bar and talking about everything under the sun with the JWT gang, as well as the infamous trip to Banyan Tree Bintan where the team dumped all the mattresses into the pool.(Read also: Creative Catch-Up: DDB’s Joji Jacob)