Socially-led creative agency We Are Social has hired Edu Pou as its new executive creative director and Gerry Cyron as its new head of strategy.

They join managing director Suzie Shaw and the 50-strong Sydney team, as they continue to invest in world-class talent to support the growing client base.

New to the Australian market, Edu has worked for some of the world’s most creative companies in advertising, innovation and entertainment, including Wieden+Kennedy, Crispin Porter + Bogusky, The Barbarian Group, and Here Be Dragons.

Edu has worked with brands such as Nike, Audi, Heineken, Coca-Cola, and Electronic Arts, always finding new, innovative ways to solve their business problems, thanks to visionary ideas spanning from traditional ATL to fully interactive VR and AR experiences.

Some of his most notable work includes the Etihad Airways’ 360-degree virtual reality film ‘Reimagine’, starring Nicole Kidman, and more recently the Cannes Lion Gold winning series ‘Dispatch’ by Edward Robles, which premiered at the Venice Film Festival 2017 and was selected at Sundance 2018.

In his 20-year career, Edu has won over 100 awards at major international shows, including One Show, CLIO, New York Festivals, Effies, and Cannes Lions, including a Cannes Grand Prix. He has also served on the jury of the most prestigious advertising award shows around the world and spoken at leading industry conferences.

Edu will be leading the development of We Are Social’s creative function, working alongside a team of editors, copywriters, art directors, videographers, photographers and designers, delivering groundbreaking social-first ideas.

Former Loud head of planning and innovation, Gerry Cyron has also joined the agency as head of strategy.

Gerry is an extremely experienced and well-respected strategy leader, having held leadership positions at Clemenger BBDO, JWT, BMF and Ogilvy & Mather, where he picked up a Cannes Effectiveness Lion for Coca-Cola’s ‘Share a Coke’ campaign.

His work has been recognised and awarded in most of the major festivals, including Effies, Cannes, D&AD, One Show, Clio, AWARDS, and many others. The Won Report named him the 2nd most awarded Planning Director in the world.

Gerry will be leading We Are Social’s research & insights and strategy team, bringing his wealth of experience in uncovering social and cultural insights that drive powerful and effective ideas.

Shaw says, “With Edu and Gerry joining our leadership line-up, we’re adding two world-class thinkers with exceedingly strong expertise in creativity, innovation and effectiveness. This is the beginning of We Are Social’s most exciting chapter in Australia so far and I can’t wait to see what we can do.”

Pou says “Social is a democratic and expressive playground where everyone’s invited, brands included. They just need to embrace its dynamic and fertile nature. They just need to be creative. That’s why I’m so excited about joining Suzie’s team, especially now that Gerry is also onboard. Nobody’s better equipped than We Are Social to partner with good brands and connect with their audiences through creativity.”

Cyron comments, “Humans, we are social beings, both online and offline. We connect over the things that are important to us and our peers; things we value. And that’s rarely marketing jargon and messages. That’s why I am absolutely delighted to have joined We Are Social, a socially-led creative agency that is packed not only with bright, brilliant, and culturally-attuned humans but with a client base like Netflix, Samsung and Activision who get the significance of communities, culture, creativity and meaningful conversations. With Edu on board and the rest of the fabulous team, I believe we can take social thinking to the next level and deliver social currency to our current and future clients.”