Former DDB EVP to Lead Creative at TM Advertising

By Patrick Coffee 

Lisa Bennett, who spent more than a decade with the DDB organization and served as CCO of its San Francisco office before stepping down in 2013, has joined TM Advertising of Dallas as chief creative officer and creative partner of CEO Becca Weigman, effective immediately.

In explaining the hire, Weigman cites Bennett’s “passion, energy and sense of humor,” adding, “The day we met, I knew she was the one.”

Of Weigman, Bennett says:

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“Becca and I had an immediate connection. She is focused on all of the right things–people, culture and building the clients’ businesses with outstanding creative solutions. We have the same philosophy, vision and desire to win.”

The release notes that TM recently recorded several new business wins including Japan Airlines, March of Dimes, ZTE, Raising Cane’s and Angie’s BOOMCHICKAPOP. The last two may be attributed to Bennett, who has also negotiated a “mobile brand campaign assignment for Yahoo!” since joining TM.

After leaving the chief creative role at DDB, Bennett spent 18 months as EVP of creative for the larger North American organization, reporting directly to president/CEO Mark O’Brien and continuing to serve as chairman of the DDB North American Creative Council. She then left the agency and launched her own Austin-based shop, which ran creative for e.l.f. Cosmetics and the Angie’s brand, before taking the open CCO role at TM earlier this month.

Former TM chief Bill Oakley, who spent nearly 25 years with the organization and got the chief creative promotion in 2010, resigned late last year (though McCann never directly confirmed this fact). Most significantly, Oakley drove creative on the American Airlines team for several years. When American launched a global creative review in July after more than two decades with McCann, the larger organization appointed The Martin Agency, rather than TM, to lead the still-ongoing pitch.

Prior to joining DDB as its San Francisco CCO in 2003, Bennett spent nearly 15 years with the Leo Burnett organization and rose to the level of EVP/ECD. During her time there, she created campaigns for McDonald’s and other big-name clients while leading successful pitches for Delta Airlines and Heinz. She has served on the juries of Cannes Lions, D&AD, Clio’s, Communications Arts and One Show and her work has been recognized by every major awards show.

Regarding the TM agency’s new creative leader, Weigman writes:

“Like me, Lisa instinctively is a builder. Together, we plan to build TM into an agency that clients of all shapes and sizes want to work with and that the most talented people in our industry want to work for.”

Bennett adds, “This is a place with tremendous potential and I’m thrilled that she chose me as her partner.”

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