The U.S. Food and Drug Administration in partnership with Draftfcb New York will create a multi-faceted marketing campaign to keep teens from trying tobacco products and convince those who have tried them to stay away. FDA is preparing to conduct multiple, integrated public health campaigns focused on preventing tobacco initiation and promoting tobacco use cessation among the nation’s youth and young adults. FDA gained authority over the manufacturing, marketing and distribution of cigarettes, cigarette tobacco, roll-your-own tobacco, and smokeless tobacco under the Family Smoking Prevention and Tobacco Control Act signed into law in June of 2009.

FDA recently announced the award of several contracts — including one to Draftfcb — to work with the agency on multi-year campaign efforts to address this pervasive public health problem. Most tobacco use starts with underage youth, who are under the minimum legal age to purchase the products. The creative teams will help FDA to lead comprehensive, evidence-based education efforts to educate people, especially youth, about the dangers of tobacco products. Fees levied on the tobacco industry fund FDA’s efforts.

"As tobacco use is the leading preventable cause of disease, it makes sense that the FDA is targeting kids before they get addicted and suffer insidious consequences," said Jeff Tarakajian, EVP, group management director at Draftfcb, who led the pitch. "It’s shocking that each day nearly 3,500 kids in the U.S. try their first cigarette, and nearly 1,000 teens who had tried previously become regular smokers. We enthusiastically accept the challenge to stem the tide and knock those numbers down."

Draftfcb will partner with Fleishman-Hillard on PR, subject-matter experts Danya International, social media pioneer NMS, and Initiative for media buying. The multi-media campaign is expected to break in late 2013 or early 2014.

"Research has proven that public education campaigns reduce the number of illnesses and death caused by tobacco," Tarakajian added. "We plan to creatively capture the attention of teens between 12-17 to illustrate why they should stay away."

Gary Resch, EVP and executive creative director at Draftfcb, said two campaigns will be created, one that focuses on prevention and another aimed at getting teens who occasionally use tobacco to stop. "As a dad, this is a job that resonates on a personal level," Resch said. "Finding creative ways to help kids steer clear of tobacco use and eventual addiction is an effort that really matters."

About Draftfcb
With an equal focus on creativity and accountability, Draftfcb is committed to producing brilliant ideas that change consumer behavior. As a global, fully integrated marketing communications agency operating against a single P&L, Draftfcb provides clients with highly collaborative, channel-neutral thinking that delivers engagement and, most importantly, action. With nearly 140 years of combined expertise, Draftfcb has roots in both consumer advertising and behavioral, data-driven direct marketing. The agency’s corporate leadership team includes Howard Draft, executive chairman; Laurence Boschetto, CEO and president; Jonathan Harries, vice chairman emeritus & executive advisor, global creative; and Neil Miller, chief operating officer. The Draftfcb network spans 150 offices in 90 countries and employs nearly 9,000 people. The agency is part of the Interpublic Group of Companies (NYSE:IPG). For more information, visit www.draftfcb.com.

RANKING:
• In April, Ad Age reported that we currently rank as the world’s 8th largest agency network (up 5 positions since 2007) and the 3rd largest agency across all disciplines in the USA (up 2 positions since 2007.)

NEW BUSINESS:
• Wins in the U.S. this past year included Cox Communications, Discover, SeaWorld/Busch Gardens, Fidelity Investments, Amtrak/Acela, Paper Mate, the FDA’s Anti-Tobacco effort (after a review that began with 45 shops) and Air New Zealand (won first in New Zealand), plus nearly 200 other new clients across our global network. We beefed up our formidable Healthcare offering with the Hudson Global acquisition, and enhanced our digital offering in S. Africa with the acquisition of Hellocomputer.

ORGANIC GROWTH:
• We received additional assignments from Abbott, Johnson & Johnson, Nestlé, Lilly, Merck, Cadbury, Valspar, Volkswagen, Sony, Newell-Rubbermaid, Kmart, U.S. Census Bureau, and retained our Jamaica Tourism account after a mandated review.

CREATIVE:
• Our creative product continues to improve with 195 major awards won. We tripled our Lion count at Cannes in 2012, winning 17 Lions. Nearly 30 times this year, our work was ranked by Creativity Magazine on its Adcritic Top 20 – which is more than we’d ever been listed over the last past five years. Our Effie performance on the local, regional and global level was first-rate, with Draftfcb now ranking as the 6th most effective agency in North America and the 12th most effective network in the world. New Zealand was once again named the Most Effective Agency in the world for Government and Non-Profit social change campaigns, and ranked as APAC’s 5th Most Effective office across all categories and the 7th Most Effective office in the world, up one spot from 2011. Austria was named that market’s Most Effective agency.
• We also won more Ogilvy Awards than any other agency, a sign that our commitment to customer intelligence and brilliant strategies is paying off. In February, the well-regarded TED organization named our Sharpie campaign one of its prestigious “Ads Worth Spreading.”
• Forbes declared our Kmart Halloween spot to be “brilliant.” Buzzfeed proclaimed our Oreo Halloween ad “simply perfect.” Our new “Live Más” tagline for Taco Bell and widely covered work for Doritos Locos Tacos and Cantina Bell were credited with record-breaking sales. Our favorite line comes from Creativity: “Oreo’s creativity continues to make us gape.”
• Various year-end “Best” lists included several Draftfcb campaigns: the universally lauded Oreo “Daily Twist” (New York); MINI/SPCA “Driving Dogs” (New Zealand); USPS “Holiday Returns” (Chicago); Tata Docomo’s “Lipstick” (India); Shelter Pet’s “Sandbox” (Chicago); and PFLAG’s “Stories” (Toronto).
• Draftfcb in Johannesburg’s was named “Top Brand Agency of the Year”; Spain was voted the market’s “Most Creative Agency”; Chile was again named “Digital Agency of the Year” for the 5th straight year; Switzerland became the 7th most creative agency, up 8 spots from 2011; the U.S. agency ranked #1 on the PROMO 100 list for the 5th straight year; and for the 3rd consecutive year, Healthcare was named the “Most Creative Agency” at the Manny Awards.

PEOPLE:
• Kate Howe was appointed President of Europe. In Asia, Jonathan Allard was named COO and James Mok, regional ECD. In South Africa, John Dixon was named “Agency Leader of the Year” and ECD Neo Mashigo won the “New Broom” Award; and in Hong Kong, managing director/ECD Iris Lo was named a “Woman to Watch” in APAC.

DIVERSITY & INCLUSION:
• On the D&I front, Draftfcb was named “Agency Champion of Inclusion” at the IPG Merge Awards with Keisha Vaughn being named “Chief Diversity Officer of the Year”; she also was named a “Diversity Champion” at World Diversity Leadership Summit (WDLS). Laurence Boschetto was named a “Diversity Affluence D&I Champion.” Peter Drakoulias was named an “Adcolor Change Agent.” The agency participated in/sponsored such D&I events as WDLS, Merge Awards, Adcolor, AAF National Conference, LEAD, the LaGrant Foundation, TORCH and the 4As.

Draftfcb Ulka today announced the appointment of Ajay Verma as Chief Growth Officer. In a homecoming of sorts, Ajay returns to the agency where he started his advertising career 16 years ago after completing his management education.

Over the last 16 years Ajay has worked at FCB Ulka [now Draftfcb Ulka], Rediffusion and Percept H on brands including Colgate, HSBC, Cadbury, Tata Motors, Rediff.com, Franklin Templeton, Tata Sky, Amul, Godrej and HPCL. He has also led the new business efforts at two of his previous positions. Ajay has an entrepreneurial streak in him, having worked as the founding CEO of eBus, India’s first digital television advertising delivery system. This is Ajay’s second stint at Draftfcb Ulka. He started his career in the erstwhile Ulka Advertising way back in 1993 as a young management trainee. He was part of the agency’s 23 year long running internship training program, Star One.

Commenting on Ajay’s appointment MG Parameswaran, Executive Director & CEO Draftfcb Ulka said, “We are delighted to have Ajay Verma back. He was one of our brightest Star One recruits. He brings with him a great amount of energy and excitement that is vitally needed to drive the growth ambitions of the Group. Ajay will work across various verticals helping us leverage our great strengths as well as open new opportunities for the various offerings of the agency. We have been often called a very quiet, shy agency. The addition of Ajay to the senior management team is a step in correcting this impression”.

Ajay says, “I loved the thrill of working in a fast evolving Internet Technology industry, but I was missing the fun and excitement of working in a large agency network. It’s a special feeling to be entrusted this critical role at Draftfcb Ulka - a company where I not only started my career, but also a place for which I have always had a great amount of respect and regard.”

Ajay Verma will head the business development efforts of Draftfcb Ulka and will work closely with the business heads of the various divisions, many of whom he knows from his early days at the agency. With his addition the Draftfcb Ulka Group gets on board an industry veteran with rich, diverse experience across a spectrum of clients. He also brings with him great depth of understanding of the new business process.

Draftfcb Ulka Advertising is a member of the Draftfcb Ulka Group, India’s third largest marketing communication group with over 200 clients, 850 professionals working across eight offices in seven cities, covering a diverse spectrum of services including advertising, media, digital, direct, analytics, brand consulting, activation/brand experience etc.

In his first major hire since taking the creative reins of Draftfcb Orange County as EVP, Chief Creative Officer on Dec. 10, Eric Springer has recruited creative heavyweight Michael Bryce to help him steward the Taco Bell account in Orange County, and the network’s soon-to-open satellite office in Los Angeles.

Bryce, who partnered with Springer at Deutsch/LA, is joining Draftfcb Orange County on Jan. 2 as EVP, Executive Creative Director. As a former EVP/group creative director at Deutsch/LA, Bryce worked closely with Springer on the successful Volkswagen pitch. He most recently has won accolades for the Samsung GS II campaign during his tenure as creative director at 72andSunny, where he also worked on Activision.

Also at Deutsch, Bryce managed the broadcast and digital creative for PlayStation U.S., and led creative management and new business wins for DirecTV, TGIFridays, and Cici’s Pizza. His automotive experience spans Volkswagen, General Motors/Chevrolet, Mitsubishi and Saturn.

“Mike has one of the most perfectly balanced creative/strategic minds I have ever worked with. He is the consummate professional -- smart, focused, funny and the master of the subtleties. He raises the bar for everyone around him, me included,” said Springer. “I know he will contribute many fresh, eye-opening and business-building ideas on Taco Bell. Mike knows how to tell a brand story like few others in the business. And he will play a key role in pursuing new business and building our operations in southern California."

In addition to Taco Bell, Draftfcb Orange County currently handles the Petco and the Advertising Council’s Wildfire Prevention/Smokey Bear accounts.

“I’m excited to be joining Eric at Draftfcb. We're committed to building a team that will push the creative and to aggressively grow the agency in Southern California with new and existing clients,” Bryce said.

Check out Bryce’s creative portfolio at http://www.krop.com/michaelbryce/#/.

About Draftfcb
With an equal focus on creativity and accountability, Draftfcb is committed to producing brilliant ideas that change consumer behavior. As a global, fully integrated marketing communications agency operating against a single P&L, Draftfcb provides clients with highly collaborative, channel-neutral thinking that delivers engagement and, most importantly, action. With nearly 140 years of combined expertise, Draftfcb has roots in both consumer advertising and behavioral, data-driven direct marketing. The agency’s corporate leadership team includes Howard Draft, executive chairman; Laurence Boschetto, CEO and president; Jonathan Harries, vice chairman emeritus & executive advisor, global creative; and Neil Miller, chief operating officer. The Draftfcb network spans 150 offices in 90 countries and employs nearly 9,000 people. The agency is part of the Interpublic Group of Companies (NYSE:IPG). For more information, visit www.draftfcb.com.

Joan Bercovitz began her new role today at Area 23, a Draftfcb Healthcare company, as EVP, managing director. Bercovitz will report to Dana Maiman, CEO & president, Draftfcb Healthcare and CEO Draftfcb New York.


With more than 20 years of experience in pharmaceutical marketing and advertising, Bercovitz most recently was the SVP, managing director of client services and project management at Group DCA. There, she tackled the restructuring and training of client services and project management teams, drove 2011 – 2014 business planning, and developed global digital business strategy.

Prior to Group DCA, Bercovitz worked at Cline, Davis & Mann where she started as VP, account group supervisor and rose to SVP, managing director. During her time at CDM, she quadrupled revenue by building the business from two to 12 brands. Bercovitz oversaw the global agency’s Novartis’ transplant and respiratory portfolios, and several products in early commercialization. She managed Pfizer brands including Lipitor, Caduet, Viagra, Vfend, and Zyvox. Bercovitz, who started her career as a pharmaceutical sales rep in Canada, replaces Renee Mellas who left the Draftfcb Healthcare affiliate on October 4.

Says Maiman, “In our search for the new Area 23 managing director, I was looking for four things: client background in sales and marketing, solid agency fundamentals, strong global account management experience and exceptional multi-channel/digital expertise. In hiring Joan, we hit a grand slam plus one.”

“I’m looking forward to working closely with my team to push the limits of our client offerings and creativity,” said Bercovitz. “Area 23 has tremendous bench strength and an amazing culture. The shop has dismantled barriers between disciplines, is nimble and has access to Draftfcb’s extensive resources. I’m thrilled to join this immensely creative and talented shop.”

Bercovitz, who also gained invaluable experience working at Astra Pharmaceuticals from sales rep to a marketing Team Leader, and at Saatchi & Saatchi, where she was a VP, account supervisor, will partner with Tim Hawkey, EVP, managing director and executive creative director at Area 23.

About the Draftfcb Healthcare Network
With more than 30 years of experience marketing to healthcare professionals, Draftfcb Healthcare produces work that is both strategically relevant and creatively compelling. The agency provides its clients with multichannel capabilities, including payer strategy and marketing, professional education, video production, strategic planning and media services. Draftfcb Healthcare’s high-energy, diverse culture and global network have enabled it to strengthen its relationships with an extensive client roster, including J&J, Gilead, Boehringer-Ingelheim, Bristol-Myers Squibb, Lilly, Novartis, Medtronic and Merck. It was named “Agency of the Year” be Medical Advertising News in 2006 and 2009 and by Medical Marketing & Media in 2007 and 2010. In 2010 and 2011, it was named Most Creative Agency by Medical Advertising News.

Draftfcb Healthcare is a unit of Draftfcb, itself a member of the Interpublic Group (NYSE: IPG). Under its network umbrella, Draftfcb Healthcare has other full-service, multichannel healthcare agencies, including AREA 23 and NeON, as well as units focusing specifically on managed markets and medical education. For more information, visit www.draftfcbhealthcare.com and/or for an augmented reality experience – you’ll need a webcam – go to www.brandsuperheroes.com.