Integrated strategy, creative and media agency Hill Holliday has expanded its creative department with the addition of four new creative directors–Jim English, Scott Padden, Danny Murphy and Alexandra Ebright–as well as two new executive vice president roles, with Dave Weist appointed EVP, head of brand and Kevin Daley promoted to EVP, head of art. In addition, Hana Abate was named social community coordinator.
Weist joins Hill Holliday from MullenLowe U.S., where he was ECD and worked with brands such as JetBlue, Royal Caribbean, Hyatt and US Cellular. He will be responsible for leading the day-to-day operations of the creative department across clients. Meanwhile in his new EVP role, Daley, who has been with Hill Holliday since 2001, will oversee overall craft with a focus on design and art direction. The appointments follow the recent launch of Social Force, an innovative creative division that focuses on capturing audience attention, led by EVP, social creative and digital content Adam Vohlidka.
“We are expanding our creative department to serve our clients across a wide array of capabilities including social, sonic design, art, illustration, and content,” said Peter Nicholson, chief creative officer, Hill Holliday. “With Dave as head of brand, Kevin as head of art, and Adam spearheading Social Force, we are perfectly positioned to meet the needs of clients in all the areas they now need to reach consumers at every touchpoint.”
The expansion of Hill Holliday’s creative department comes at a time of great momentum for the Boston-based agency, which was acquired by Attivo Group in January 2024.
English has been appointed creative director/music creator and producer. A composer and producer, English will lead sonic branding and sound design as part of the Social Force division, allowing the agency to break the traditional process of outsourcing sound design.
Padden joins as creative director/writer. He has previously held creative director positions at agencies such as Hero Collective, Cutwater and mcgarrybowen, as well as having been a sr. writer for VH1.
Murphy was named creative director/design. He joins Hill Holliday from Havas, where he was sr. art director, a position he also previously held at Leo Burnett.
Ebright joins as creative director/art director/writer/illustrator. She previously held the position of sr. art director at Cutwater and art director at Deutsch NY.
Hill Holliday also announced that Abate has been named social community coordinator working with Social Force. She will be responsible for managing client social platforms, and the conversation and interaction with the brand channels.
