Innovation consultancy Fearlessly Frank appoints Tim Hipperson as chairman
Innovation consultancy Fearlessly Frank, which counts HTC and Nissan among its clients, has appointed Tim Hipperson as chairman.
Hipperson, who is also interim chief executive of Weve - the mobile marketing joint venture between O2, EE and Vodafone - has been brought in to help drive growth for the business, which provides brand strategy, design, technology and content for global businesses, private equity firms and start-ups.
Hipperson told The Drum his reasons for joining Fearlessly Frank were in part due to the fact clients are increasingly seeking more “agile, innovative and free-formed” companies, which can keep apace with market changes in a way in which traditional network agencies may struggle.
The traditional advertising and communications landscape has been “under pressure” for some time, having shifted to what is now a completely “consumer-empowered” world, according to Hipperson. “Consumers are in control of how they engage with brands, in what is effectively a 24/7 connected world.
“The need to live in real time and understand consumer behaviours and engage consumers with brand experiences and how brands communicate is absolutely critical. And a lot of the traditional and group agencies are still operating in a very siloed manner, and the cost needed to evolve those businesses is vast,” he added.
To evolve in sync with the demands of tomorrow’s connected consumers marketers are under pressure to find new ways to engage. “Creative execution has become commoditised but great ideas are at a premium. And ideas don’t mean creative executions, they can be anything from product innovation to points of positioning, and that is a complete difference - pureplay insights, strategy and consultancy work generate really creative, innovative ideas that are game changing,” he added.
The former ZenithOptimedia boss already holds a number of advisory and non-executive roles, including at real-time bidding specialist, Intelligent Futures, and runs his own consultancy Morph which specialises in helping businesses navigate digital transformation strategies.
He was appointed interim CEO for Weve last summer following the departure of David Sear. He is understood to have undertaken a strategic review of the company.