Adweek states that "sometimes we all get far too enamored by big, blockbuster account wins and shiny new ad campaigns that go along with them. It's sexy. But what's more difficult, and more interesting in many ways, is for an agency to continuously come up with original ideas to keep existing campaigns fresh."
Says Derek Bouwer, COO TBWA South Africa, "This is an exceptional accolade for the TBWA Global Network. The African Middle East region is one of the fastest growing regions for the network and the South African agency's creative excellence for both local and international clients has contributed to this global success.
Over the past two years, TBWA have grown in multiple dimensions, expanding its relationships across multiple offices with brands like McDonald's, Nissan, Henkel and Michelin, among others. For McDonald's alone it added seven new markets in 2006 - Switzerland, the Netherlands, Portugal, Belgium, Italy, UK and the US.
TBWA's maturation as a network has enabled the top guns to tackle big-picture issues such as succession plans and reinserting media planning into the development of client work.
Jean-Marie Dru, chief executive officer of TBWA Worldwide pays tribute to TBWA offices around the world for the achievement: "It is clearly the hard work, seamless collaboration and passion for brands, including our own, that have collectively made TBWA the best global agency network of 2006."
By giving worldwide account directors more clout — back in 2002 — Dru made it clear that client needs came first. At the same time, he recognised that local offices should be rewarded for their contributions to global accounts. As such, the flow of revenue and resources to local offices increases as their scope of work expands.
Another key to unifying TBWA has been the development of Dru's strategic practice of "disruption", which challenges clients to defy conventions. Each year, agency offices host hundreds of "disruption days" for existing and prospective clients to examine marketing strategies on specific brands to make sure they're fresh. Not only has disruption become an effective global marketing tool, but it also has given the network's 9700 staffers a common focus and language to express it.
"We have creative energy coming from a lot of different places," says Dru.
"It is gratifying to see TBWA behaving like the global network I always knew we were, and to see our people work with one voice, under one philosophy and one brand."
"We are proud to be part of this network and to have clients that allow us to produce the work that enables us to win Global Agency of the Year," concludes Bouwer.
