IPG agency Octagon has announced the hire of new senior creative hire John Weir (right in photo) as creative director.

Reporting into Lizi Hamer, regional creative director, Weir’s appointment will bolster the Sydney team bringing with him notable experience at Fabric (Ogilvy and Mather) and most recently as in-house creative director at Optus. 

Andrew Clarke, agency director, said, “Since Octagon expanded our in-house creative offering across the region we’ve gone from strength to strength in terms of our creative outputs and business growth. With four new creative hires across the region in the past 12 months John’s position cements our senior creative presence in Sydney, which will well serve our Australian clients well and really bolster our integrated creative content work with Milkmoney here in the Sydney office.”

Hamer said, “As the business has grown so too has our creative team. We’ve built a killer creative team across Asia Pac and with John I’m confident we’ll continue to make our mark, with creative that earns attention.”

In addition, Simone Errey (left in photo) will return from maternity leave as head of operations – APAC, a newly created role in Octagon that reflects the recent expansions and changes the company has enjoyed. As a 10-year veteran of the Octagon business, Errey will be tasked with developing initiatives that improve brand communications, staff culture and getting the best out of the Octagon’s talent across offices in Sydney, Singapore, Tokyo, Seoul, Beijing and Mumbai, and with a focus on the agency’s internal culture. 

Ben Hartman, managing director – APAC said, “Growth is always great news to be celebrated by the business, but while we welcome the freshness and energy brought into the agency by new people, clients and projects it’s equally important to keep clear sight of who we are and what we want to stand for. Without great people and a healthy culture we don’t have an agency, which is why this new role is critical to Octagon regionally.”

Errey added, “Coming from within the ranks of our account-team and playing a role in the different phases in the company’s evolution, I definitely have a unique perspective and a genuine passion for what makes this business and our people tick. This role will take our operations, our work, clients, projects and especially our people to the next level. We want to continue to attract the best talent and make sure our culture remains vibrant, collaborative, and supportive – from there great work and great client relationships will thrive.”