KBS hired Patrick Scissons to fill the new position of global chief creative officer, a first for the agency. He will begin the role late this summer, working closely with KBS CEO Guy Hayward on the agency’s global business out of KBS’ New York offices.
The position was created, and Scissons brought on, to fill the void left in the wake of the departure of New York CCOs Dan Kelleher and Jonathan Mackler in January.
“Patrick was our instant and unanimous choice,” said Hayward. “As a tech entrepreneur he loves the possibilities that technology provides creatives, what he has done in transforming Grey’s creative output is enviable and he has experience working nationally and internationally. On top of that, he appreciates the variety of skills and personalities that make up the KBS leadership team.”
Scissons joins KBS from Grey Canada, where he has served as CCO since his arrival in October of 2011 from Birthplace, the multidisciplinary agency he founded in 2010 (he was also CEO there). Prior to founding Birthplace, Scissons served as CCO for social media tech company Syncapse for a little over a year and spent around three and a half years as VP/group creative director at BBDO, working with brands clients such as P&G, Doritos, Fed Ex, Pepsi, Mercedes, Guinness, Snickers and Campbell’s. That followed a year and a half as a senior copywriter with Saatchi & Saatchi (P&G, Toyota and Tylenol) and a year as an associate creative director at ACLC, where he worked on the Honda, Acura, Toshiba, Salvation Army and ABC Literacy Foundation accounts.
His best-known work may be the branding/launch campaign for Moms Demand Action for Gun Sense in America, a gun control advocacy group founded after the Newtown shooting in 2012.
Regarding his new job, Scissions says, “KBS’ current momentum and thoroughly modern approach to marketing really spoke to me. They have incredible breadth of capabilities, a deep bench of talent, and a vibrant entrepreneurial culture. It’s a great formula with the potential to do game-changing stuff in our industry and I’m really excited to be joining Guy and his team.”
Scissons’ appointment follows on the heels of three executive-level promotions announced by KBS yesterday.