Digital agency Sputnik has appointed former Furnace chief Stephen O’Farrell as its new managing director ahead of an aggressive expansion drive that will include Sydney, Brisbane and possibly the Asia-Pacific region.
O’Farrell has been installed following a two-month search handled by Gavin Campion, chief executive of Sputnik.
The new managing director will lead Sputnik’s attempts to establish a permanent Sydney presence, followed by a plan to enter the Brisbane market via a joint venture with another company and then beyond Australia into the Asia-Pacific region.
O’Farrell, who has already started at Sputnik’s Melbourne headquarters, was previously joint MD at The Furnace, before taking a career break in October to go travelling. He previously spent seven years in New York working for DDB and Euro RSCG in client service roles.
“I can see no reason why Sputnik can’t extend to be the premier digital agency in Asia-Pacific, as well as Australia,” O’Farrell told B&T.
“We have Google as a client in Sydney and, although they are still our focus, we have other potential clients waiting in the wings. The growth plan is ambitious, but it needs to be done. We are already doing global work and we want the Sputnik brand to break out of Australia in the not too distant future.”
CEO Campion added: “We already have a tactical presence in Sydney, but we really need to acquire an agency there as around 15% of our business comes from the city.”
In April video streaming company Roo Group agreed to acquire Sputnik, with the newly-enlarged company rebranded as Kit Digital. As part of the deal, Campion has moved to Dubai to become global president of the business.
The tie-up has seen Sputnik pick up worldwide assignments such as website work for UK newspaper brands The Sun and The Times, as well as an online project for Seth MacFarlane, founder of animated comedy Family Guy.
