Ogilvy SG names Melvyn Lim and Nicolas Courant co-chief creative officers

Ogilvy has promoted executive creative directors Melvyn Lim (pictured right) and Nicolas Courant (pictured left) to co-chief creative officers. They will continue to support Ogilvy's ambition to produce work that makes brands matter and has local impact and global influence.The duo replaces Eugene Cheong, chief creative officer, Ogilvy Asia, who will focus on his regional role and ensure that the creative agenda remains aligned and at the forefront across Ogilvy's 30 offices in 18 Asia Pacific countries. Cheong will continue to be based in Singapore, playing the role of advisor and mentor to the new CCOs.Lim and Courant will also focus on building a diversified creative capability that extends beyond the traditional creative department and includes specialists in all forms of digital, including social, customer experience and technology. Both report to Chris Riley, chairman, Ogilvy Singapore and Eugene Cheong, chief creative officer, Ogilvy Asia.Lim joined the agency in 2007 and has risen through the ranks from senior art director to his new role. He was named ECD in 2011. Meanwhile, Courant began his career as a copywriter in France before joining Ogilvy 12 years ago to launch an office in Tunis in 2006 as creative director. In that role, he implemented new offerings in creative, PR and brand activation. In 2012, he was named head of the MENA regional creative council, before joining Ogilvy Singapore a year later to work on brands such as Unilever, Coca-Cola and Allianz, among others."Having been in the trenches with these guys for over 1,800 days, I can tell you without hesitation that I am leaving the creative flower of this iconic agency in very able hands. Both relentlessly competitive by nature, we are excited to see what they will achieve through their powers combined," Cheong said.Riley said the duo could not be more "complementary", and that is "particularly important" as the agency transitions into a one Ogilvy creative network. In an conversation with Marketing, Riley further added that the two were chosen as they are “passionate about ideas and creating content that can matter to people”.“They have a joint vision to elevate the creative excellence around the entire agency, beyond the traditional creative department and across all platforms, to produce work that is actually meaningful in people’s lives. They will diversify the creative capability through new expertise in all forms in order to generate communication pieces people care about,” he said.Riley added that the appointment of the Co-CCOs is to support the next phase of the agency’s creative leadership."This comes at a time of great change across the business as the company transitions to a one Ogilvy creative network. What both Lim and Courant can bring to this shared role is their different but complementary individual skills and backgrounds," he said."Lim is a digital native who has become an ambidextrous, channel-agnostic creative with deep insight into Singapore's cultural nuances. Meanwhile, Courant is a branded content specialist that brings a modern international perspective from his experience working across three continents, combined with a special affinity for elevating FMCG work into truly meaningful pieces of content," he added.Last month, Ogilvy brought together the three distinct units of OgilvyOne, Ogilvy & Mather Advertising and Ogilvy Public Relations under a single, unified group with a common identity, positioning, client service model and P&L. The unified group, which includes a new organisational structure and brand identity, also includes various company sub-brands and specialty brands.(Read also: JWT MY and Ogilvy combine resources, Saurabh Saksena to lead both teams)