Ogilvy has named Matthew Curry as its global executive creative director for IBM. He will be responsible for defining, shaping, and driving the global creative vision for EightBar, a bespoke WPP team comprised of creative and media talent dedicated to IBM.
Ogilvy has served as IBM’s global creative agency partner for nearly 30 years and recently launched “Let’s create”, the company's most significant brand initiative in more than a decade. The effectiveness of the longstanding partnership was recognized in 2019 when IBM and Ogilvy were the recipients of the 5 for 50 Effie Award which honored five brands who most effectively adapted, stayed relevant and sustained business success over time. Earlier this year IBM was inducted into the Advertising Hall of Fame, just the 11th company to ever receive this distinct recognition and the first B2B brand to do so.
Liz Taylor, global chief creative officer, said: “IBM is a brand that has not only moved with the times but created them – and Ogilvy has had the distinct pleasure of co-creating with them for almost 30 years. We are thrilled that Matt is joining us to help produce a new period of game-changing, legacy-making work that brings to life the technological innovations that are creating the fabric of our reality. Matt embodies the essence of ‘Let’s create’ – a belief that creativity will be the defining currency of business moving forward and driver of impact in the world.”
Curry said: “IBM is one of the world’s most iconic brands, one that has pioneered new eras of innovation and helped solve some of the world’s toughest challenges. The opportunity to help lead their next chapter, while partnering with the most talented leadership group in the industry, couldn’t be more exciting. I’m looking forward to doing big things with these two companies of giants.”
Curry is an Emmy-nominated creative leader. He spent the last three years at McCann New York as Deputy Chief Creative Officer leading the agency’s Verizon account. There he oversaw the massive launch of their 5G network as well as major Super Bowl campaigns, Oscars night takeovers that gave voice to the underrepresented, and a live streamed concert series with some today’s biggest artists to help save small businesses during the pandemic. Before McCann, Curry was partner and chief creative officer of independent creative agency Butler, Shine, Stern & Partners in San Francisco. Prior to BSSP, Curry was at 72andSunny in L.A. leading the Google, Activision and Starbucks accounts. While there, he and his teams were nominated for an Emmy for their Google Year in Search work, sent Michael Phelps into space for the global launch of Call of Duty and led the global roll out of the first new espresso in Starbucks’s history.
This marks a homecoming for Curry as he began his career working in Ogilvy’s Beijing office. He’s lived and worked all over the world, spending seven years in China, a year in Korea, and a year in Italy — experience he draws upon when helping brands stand out on the global stage. His work has been recognized by The Emmys, Cannes, The One Show, Clios, Webbys and more, all of which he attributes back to relentless teamwork and ambitious client partners. He believes partnership is the biggest superpower and strives to help teams and clients do their best work.
