‘Publicis India wants to be the go-to agency for both legacy brands & young businesses’

This March, Publicis India appointed Aman Mannan and Shitu Patil as joint National Creative Directors (NCDs). In their new roles, the duo are leading the creative vision for all brands at Publicis India. They leverage their expertise to lead the agency's creative vision across all offices in India.

e4m caught up with Aman Mannan and Shitu Patil to get a peek into their working style, their vision for the new roles and what does creativity actually mean for them.

Excerpts:

Is your appointment as Joint National Creative Directors at Publicis India indicative of a growing trend towards multiple creative leadership roles in agencies, or does it reflect an expanding scope of work that necessitates more than one individual to fulfil effectively?

Aman: The advertising landscape is changing. Brands today expect more from the agencies, they want strategic partners who can walk with them in achieving their goals. When there is more than one creative head, it strengthens collaboration and allows you to tackle complex challenges with a multifaceted approach, helping you stay ahead of the curve.

Shitu: One is solo. Two is a team. I’ve had some of my most creatively enriching experiences as part of an art-copy team. Of course, over the years and especially after donning a creative entrepreneur hat for a decade this art-copy divide doesn’t exist. But what remains is coming together of two distinct and enriched perspectives working towards a common goal to create brilliant work and build a leading agency. So, I think having a joint role is a win-win for our clients, the agency and us as individuals.

What are your key responsibilities, objectives and strategy for developing the agency's creative framework?

Shitu: We have just started, but what already exists is a strong foundation backed by great culture. The values to help creativity and brave work thrive is what Paritosh Srivastava (CEO), Oindrila Roy (MD) and team have built over the last couple of years. The heart is in the right place, and I truly believe great things happen when good people with the right intent come together.

While both Aman and I are different people, we truly believe empowering our people is the best way to succeed. We want to create a workplace where people look forward to coming in and creating work that excites them every single day and makes a true difference for brands.

Aman: Under the leadership of Paritosh and Oindrila, our role isn’t restricted to just looking at the creative output, but we play a big role in business development as well. This makes us all equally responsible for the business. I really admire this style of leadership, where there is equal ownership, and each member of the team is working towards a common goal. This is also reflected in the work we put out for our clients.

We aim to bring a problem-solving approach to every project, ensuring our creative solutions are both innovative and relevant. We intend to develop a robust creative framework that not only enhances our agency’s capabilities but also delivers exceptional value to our clients.

How does Publicis India’s mission and your creative philosophies align? How are you fostering innovation within the agency?

Aman: Publicis India's mission of 'Creativity to Drive Brand Value' is at the heart of everything we do. We believe that creativity is not just about creating compelling and standout campaigns but also about creating meaningful, long-lasting connections with consumers. Our mission aligns perfectly with this as we focus on strategic ideas, powered by data and technology to help brands grow and build loyalty.

To foster innovation within the agency, we constantly upskill ourselves to keep up with changing trends. As Creative Heads, we encourage our teams to push the boundaries of creativity, leading to breakthrough campaigns that capture attention and drive results.

In 2024, what does creativity actually mean? With the changing technology and clients asking for clutter-breaking work, is there extreme pressure on creatives?

Shitu: I believe that the creative process is the same, application to interesting new areas and mediums is the key. I also believe we are in the business of making our brands be, look and behave in the best possible way. Of course, with all the high-octane events, brands want to stand out, but the main objective always is to be able to reach the right audience and to help businesses flourish.

At Publicis India, we believe in using creativity to drive brand value, and when we partner with our clients, we ensure that we keep their best interests in mind. There are always distractions considering everyone wants to catch the attention of the viewer, and it is on agencies like ours to move the needle well- beyond creative, to partner with brands strategically across their long-term goals, which is what we are aiming at.

For the coming two years, what's your plan to take the agency to the next level, given that Publicis India is part of a Groupe that has other creative agencies as well, what will be your differentiating factor?

Aman: We have a strong team under the leadership of Paritosh, Oindrila and Snehasis Bose (CSO) and together we are working towards further strengthening the agency.

We would like to be the go-to agency for both legacy brands and young businesses, and partner with them through various stages of growth. With our ability to seamlessly integrate strategy, media, creative, digital, and other services, we will be working to provide a comprehensive solution tailored to each client's needs.

Our main goal is to create a culture of creativity, trust, and collaboration.

Shitu: The industry is going through major changes. We are in a people’s business and so it is important that we build an agency where people are motivated to deliver their best, every day. With our strong leadership, we are creating a culture where everyone has a voice, and each one grows.

To achieve this, we have created our culture pillars, which is a reminder for each member of the agency to collectively take this agency to the next phase of growth. We have also started programs like the Boss Lady, where the next set of women leaders are being groomed into the leadership roles. It’s an interesting phase, where we are focused on training and growing our teams.

What are the upcoming trends in the advertising industry?

Shitu: I believe the first and foremost will be the growing mandate for agencies. There will need to be more ownership of the brand’s business. We will also need to elevate ourselves from being creative agencies to partnering with our clients to help them grow their business and at Publicis India we are already on that path.

Apart from that, there will be a push towards using more tech and data enabled campaigns. As the requirement from brands increase, agencies will need to upskill to provide anintegrated communications strategy to meet the goals. With increasing competition, it is not going to be about creating the communications strategy for one festive season, or a particular launch, but a well-rounded approach across.

Aman: AI has offered an exciting range of possibilities for creating interactive, personalized, and relatable content. This means we can expect more engaging and tailored advertisements that resonate with audiences.

Furthermore, there's a shift towards immersive advertising experiences using technologies like augmented reality (AR) and virtual reality (VR). These technologies will allow brands to create memorable experiences that captivate consumers. With such advancements, we can expect out-of-the-box ideas and trends in the advertising industry.