Leo Burnett Melbourne Hires Four New Creative Directors

Publicis Groupe’s Leo Burnett Melbourne has announced a new line-up in its creative department with the appointment of four new creative directors.

Chris Jovanov, Jess Lilley, Jim Walsh, and Daniel Pizzato join the agency with a deep and diverse range of digital, creative and design experience.

As digital creative director, Jovanov (pictured above, far left) will continue to evolve Leo Burnett Melbourne’s digital offering. His background includes leadership roles at R/GA New York, AKQA Melbourne and Clemenger BBDO.

Commenting on his new role, Jovanov said: “It’s great to be joining a genuinely nice, open and talented crew that understand how creativity and tech can positively engage with, and influence, our culture and behaviour.”

Creative duo Jess Lilley (pictured above, second from right) and Jim Walsh (pictured above, far right) will head up a range of brands, with a focus on driving Leo Burnett Melbourne’s creative product.

Most recently creative directors at J. Walter Thompson Melbourne, the move represents a coming home of sorts for Walsh, who enjoyed three years at Leo Burnett Sydney before heading to Colenso BBDO in 2013 and settling in Melbourne three years later.

Lilley spent eight years in London working for independent agencies including Naked, Profero and This is BD, before returning to Melbourne in 2013. She has since worked at Clemenger BBDO and JWT.

Walsh and Lilley said they were happy to be joining an agency with such strong leadership and a genuine drive and enthusiasm to create brilliant work.

“I’m personally impressed that the creative department is 50 per cent very talented women – still a rarity in agency world and a reflection on Leo’s commitment to equality and diversity,” Lilley added.

Daniel Pizzato (pictured above, second from the left) has been promoted within Leo Burnett Melbourne, teaming up with existing creative director Michelle Walsh to leverage his design, fashion and conceptual creative experience across major clients.

Before Leos, Pizzato spent five years at Whybin/TBWA, where he was one of the creatives behind ANZ’s ‘GAYTM’ campaign.

Previously, Pizzato worked in luxury fashion in Europe with iconic brands such as Gucci, Alexander McQueen and London Fashion Week. His focus at Leo Burnett is to help build the global Leo Burnett Design offering.

“Design thinking and innovation need to drive everything we do,” he said. “So, it’s exciting to be working with such a great team to expand our design footprint even further.”

Jason Williams, chief creative officer at Leo Burnett Australia, said the agency was excited by the four appointments.

“We’ve been building our offering as a creative solutions company in both Melbourne and Sydney for some time, and each of these four will bring fresh energy and firepower,” he said.

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Chris Jovanov Daniel Pizzato Jess Lilley Jim Walsh Leo Burnett Melbourne