Update: confirmed that TBWA\Melbourne would take over the account.
VML will no longer serve as Defence Force Recruiting’s creative agency as of March next year. TBWA\Melbourne has been announced as its new agency.
TBWA\Melbourne will spearhead all creative communications and digital services output, partnering with fellow Omnicom-owned marketing transformation and technology specialist, Credera, to integrate advanced data and technology solutions. CultureVerse also sits within the agency village and will use co-design methodologies to help connect with, and influence, multicultural audiences.
The key focus for the partnership will be to help recruit people to the Australian Defence Force (ADF) to build, sustain, and maximise the Defence capability.
Kimberlee Wells, CEO, TBWA\Melbourne said “This appointment allows us to bring the best of our offering to the table, for the best of all reasons; driving recruitment for the Australian Defence Force. We’re excited to harness our deep strategic and creative capability, cutting edge innovation and cultural intelligence tools, to deliver meaningful impact across the total brand experience. We can’t wait to get started.”
Paul Reardon, chief creative officer, TBWA\Melbourne, added “Our team and our agency partners hold the Australian Defence Force in the highest possible regard — we always have.
“Being asked to use our Creative skills in service of Australia and our Nation’s strategic capability is nothing short of an honour. It’s humbling, and it’s hard to explain just how much this opportunity means to us all. We look forward to reaching new heights for recruitment and
working with the incredible Australians within the ADF.”
VML AUNZ CEO, Thomas Tearle, said: “Helping to protect the commonwealth is the honour of a lifetime, and we are incredibly grateful for the opportunities our partnership with DFR has afforded us and our team.
“Working with the Navy, Army, and Air Force, we have learned and experienced so much and have forged enduring professional and personal relationships that will continue long into the future.
” We could not be prouder of the new ADF Careers Masterbrand identity, the subsequent campaign, and the new Sitecore website environment: adfcareers.gov.au. Delivering these types of projects is never simple, especially in such a complex environment, and we are so encouraged by the results, including 56 per cent recognition of the new ADF Careers campaign—almost double the norm for a federal government campaign—as well as six consecutive months of more than 10,000 application starts and the highest application volumes in 20 years in August 2024.
“We hope to see these go from strength to strength in the coming years. We now turn our attention to facilitating the most elegant, professional, and efficient transition we can deliver, which we see as a significant part of our legacy.
“We aim to leave DFR in the best possible position for success heading into FY25/26.
“In parallel, we are now looking forward to embarking upon new client partnerships to work with the high-performing team we assembled for DFR.
“Finally, we want to personally thank Commodore Jan Wiltshire for her leadership and say thank you to her team, past and present, for their
genuine partnership over our tenure.”
