Juniper Park\TBWA hired 15-year advertising veteran Dustin Rideout (pictured, second from left) as chief strategy officer, concluding a five-month search for the agency’s new chief strategist.
In the role, Rideout will be responsible for leading strategy across the agency’s North American client roster, reporting directly to Juniper Park\TBWA CEO Jill Nykoliation (pictured, second from right).
He will lead a strategy team comprised of 13-member multidisciplinary team of brand and communications planners, data scientists, analysts, digital strategists, and communications managers while joining an executive leadership team that includes Nykoliation, CCO Graham Lang (pictured, far left), president David Toto (pictured, far right) and CFO Laura White. He fills a vacancy left by the departure of Mark Tomblin last summer, who left the agency after three years to start his own strategic consultancy, Thinking Unstuck.
“Developing ideas that disrupt culture requires incredibly strong strategic discipline. Dustin brings brilliant precision while embracing innovation and diversity,” Nykoliation said in a statement. “Dustin is one of the sharpest strategists in the industry. His belief that through radical collaboration and empathy, creativity has the power to change the world, is something that aligns directly with our culture and vision for the future.”
Rideout joins Juniper\TBWA from McCann Canada in Toronto, where he spent the past three years as chief strategy officer following a brief stint client-side as head of brand and fan experience for Maple Leaf Sports and Entertainment Partnership.
Before that he spent three and a half years as svp, strategy and partner for Sid Lee, where he led strategy on the agency’s “We The North” campaign for the Toronto Raptors, as well as leading strategy for the Toronto Maple Leafs, Toronto FC and The North Face. Before joining Sid Lee, Rideout led digital strategy for the Toronto office of Leo Burnett, where he led integrated strategic planning for Ikea.