Creative innovation company R/GA has announced two appointments, with Prue Jones joining as national executive creative director, experience design and Ben Yabsley returning to R/GA as national executive creative director.
Jones was formerly the design and creative director at Accenture Song. She has expertise across creative strategy, digital and service design, and large-scale transformation, spanning sectors from government and tech to retail.
She has partnered with local and global brands to design future-ready products and services and embed AI into systems. An advocate for inclusive design, Prue is also the co-creator of ‘Never Not International Women’s Day’, a global initiative that celebrates women in creativity for the past three years.
Most recently group creative director at Dentsu Creative New York, Yabsley rejoins R/GA, where he previously served as creative director in the New York office.
Yabsley has created work from Super Bowl stunts and Twitch-native content to global art installations and branded record labels. His campaigns for The New Yorker, Budweiser, IMAX, and 7-Eleven have included everything from a 300-foot J Balvin to Google hacks.
“Prue and Ben bring the energy and creative ambition that reflects the direction we’re taking as a business. We’re building a leadership team with the vision and versatility to lead through change. Our independence and culture of reinvention allow us to respond in real time to where culture, technology, and creativity are heading next, and help our clients do the same,” Victoria Curro, managing director, Australia at R/GA said.
“While a lot of agencies keep repackaging the past and calling it innovation, R/GA knows true future impact comes from inimitable talent, sharp AI plays, a killer client roster, and unbridled creativity as the red thread through it all. Wholly independent and free from the noise of holding company politics, it also brings global scale with deep local expertise. I couldn’t resist all that. Let’s go,” Jones said.
“I’m so excited to be returning to Australia and to R/GA. I can’t think of a better place to be for the upcoming advertising revolution, in a country that values ideas above all else, and at an agency with reinvention baked into its DNA. What’s always drawn me to R/GA is the chance to collaborate across disciplines with the sharpest minds in design and technology. It’s the kind of environment where great ideas happen, and surrounding yourself with people smarter than you is an amazing career cheat code,” Yabsley added.
Jones and Yabsley will join R/GA Australia’s executive team alongside managing director Victoria Curro and executive strategy director, Marie Conley, and will work closely with chief design officer, APAC Ben Miles, chief technology officer, APAC, Guill Rodas, newly appointed global executive director of AI products, Ben Cooper and Michael Titshall, APAC CEO and global head of AI products.
Seamus Higgins, R/GA Australia’s chief creative officer, has departed the business, returning to London for personal reasons.
“While we’re incredibly sad to see Seamus go – and the feeling is mutual – we fully support his decision. Family comes first, always. Since rejoining R/GA two years ago, Seamus has made a lasting impact on the work, the team, and the culture. We’re deeply grateful for everything he’s brought to the business,” Curro added.
