Hicks, who joined the agency April 2008 from OgilvyOne, officially ended her stint at Proximity in late March following a redundancy measure, although she has been out of the office for as long as three months, sources say. There is no word on her next move.
Hicks’ departures follows the exit of ECD Glenn Barlett at the end of 2008 to Proximity Japan, although sources say he is still working on projects for the agency.
Gavin Cranston, director of client services, is also scheduled to leave next month after three years with Proximity Shanghai.
According to Carol Potter, CEO of Proximity’s sister agency BBDO China, the departures will have a minimal affect on Proximity’s ability to conduct business. Potter pointed out that Proximity has been strengthening its alignment with BBDO across the globe and, with this, BBDO China’s ECD Wai Foong Leong was given the additional responsibility of overseeing Proximity’s artistic direction following Bartlett’s departure.
“Things have been extremely vibrant and business has been growing. Specifically, our luxury-goods business has been growing significantly despite being in a recession,” Potter said, refuting rumours that Proximity Shanghai will be folded into BBDO. “It’s true that there has been a turnover on the digital side but we have actively engaged in discussion with senior executives and creative directors to help us grow Proximity more.”
However, according to a source close to the agency, a new roster of upper management invokes questions on the branch’s overall stability, and without an announced replacement for Hicks, clients may be confused as to the direction of their accounts.
“It’s actually very sad because Proximity did very well last year, but with the global climate, it’s now not sure how to position itself in China, so this is the agency taking a step back and figuring out what it needs to do,” the source said.
According to Potter, the agency is taking steps to replace Hicks but has not released a start date for a new manager.
Hicks’ departures follows the exit of ECD Glenn Barlett at the end of 2008 to Proximity Japan, although sources say he is still working on projects for the agency.
Gavin Cranston, director of client services, is also scheduled to leave next month after three years with Proximity Shanghai.
According to Carol Potter, CEO of Proximity’s sister agency BBDO China, the departures will have a minimal affect on Proximity’s ability to conduct business. Potter pointed out that Proximity has been strengthening its alignment with BBDO across the globe and, with this, BBDO China’s ECD Wai Foong Leong was given the additional responsibility of overseeing Proximity’s artistic direction following Bartlett’s departure.
“Things have been extremely vibrant and business has been growing. Specifically, our luxury-goods business has been growing significantly despite being in a recession,” Potter said, refuting rumours that Proximity Shanghai will be folded into BBDO. “It’s true that there has been a turnover on the digital side but we have actively engaged in discussion with senior executives and creative directors to help us grow Proximity more.”
However, according to a source close to the agency, a new roster of upper management invokes questions on the branch’s overall stability, and without an announced replacement for Hicks, clients may be confused as to the direction of their accounts.
“It’s actually very sad because Proximity did very well last year, but with the global climate, it’s now not sure how to position itself in China, so this is the agency taking a step back and figuring out what it needs to do,” the source said.
According to Potter, the agency is taking steps to replace Hicks but has not released a start date for a new manager.
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