The Ogilvy India office in Mumbai was abuzz with enthusiasm on Tuesday as Devika Bulchandani, Global CEO of Ogilvy, and Piyush Pandey, Chairman Global Creative and Executive Chairman of Ogilvy India, took center stage to address the media.

Bulchandani surprised the media and advertising industry by announcing that ad industry’s global stalwart Piyush Pandey will now move into an advisory role and Hephzibah Pathak will replace him as Executive Chairperson of Ogilvy India effective from January 1, 2024.

“As Chief Advisor, Piyush Pandey will work closely with the leadership team to ensure the impact and richness of the Ogilvy legacy transcends all functions and levels of Ogilvy in India. He is on a mission to make certain Ogilvy’s rich creative heritage continues and makes an impact, particularly on the creative product and the digital transformation that has already seamlessly integrated to make Ogilvy India a modern marketing powerhouse,” said Bulchandani, creating a ripple in the industry.

Leadership transition will involve a variety of senior Ogilvy India veterans taking the next steps in their long tenure with the agency. This includes SN Rane, Group Executive Co-Chairman India & COO South Asia, who will work as Business Advisor to Ogilvy Asia Pacific, she informed.

In the wake of the top-level shuffle in the India team, exchange4media sought to understand from Bulchandani and Pandey their vision for Ogilvy 2024, their successes, challenges, and BJP’s campaign for 2024 general elections, an important account which Ogilvy proudly owned in 2014 and 2019 elections.

Excerpts:

Devika, you talked about “Ogilvy 2024” which starts from transition in leadership role in the India team. We are keen to understand your vision for Ogilvy in general and Ogilvy India in particular for 2024?

Bulchandani: It is not a change in our vision. So that's the first thing I want to clarify. Because sometimes when you're talking about leadership change, it comes with a big change in the vision of a company. This is not the case here. Piyush and I have been talking about succession planning for a while. So, the vision for India in 2024 is to continue to build on the strengths that we have today, and also to continue to modernize as the landscape modernizes.

The core of our India operation and the core of Ogilvy is creativity. So, we are not sitting here saying that we want to become a technology company or a performance marketing company. All these things are tools that we have at our disposal so that we create the most compelling ideas that reach an audience for our clients and have an impact on the business. So that is not going to change.

Are there more leadership transitions on the card as you operate in 93 countries?

Bulchandani: Not for the rest of this year. I can't predict what will happen in 2024. For the rest of this year, there’s one or two more but nothing major.

You have completed a year in this role (as Global CEO). This has been a challenging year for the advertising industry. How far have you succeeded in meeting your targets?

Bulchandani: Depends how you define targets. If I have to define what we set out as a target, it was to grow a bit as a commercial enterprise. Growth is just a symbol of the vibrance of a company, which we achieved. So, I feel very good about that. We grew because of the product we have. The product that we have is our creative product.

When it comes to our creative product, we're at the top of our game. So, I feel really good about that. This is not just India, I look at the global scale too, then it's not just again, five markets, if you look at Oglivy’s performance anywhere, it will always be 30 countries that are doing well. I feel good about that.

We do all of this because of the talent that we have. Because we don't have machines. I feel we are in a very enviable position today globally. In India, we have the best talent in the industry. So, I'm sitting here, not with a delusional sense of optimism. It's not just me saying this to make myself feel good, but more clients are talking to us, we're winning big and not just winning small things. We are a big company and we need to be winning the biggest global clients.

Pandey:The reputation that we have doesn’t come by performing well in just one or two countries. When you have 93 countries, you carry a reputation which defines your behaviour, and there is a belief in clients to work with you.

Devika, last time in an interview to e4m, you said that you would like to scale up India’s operations. Have you been successful?

Bulchandani: India is one of our top three growth markets. We have unlimited potential. And remember, we have two operations in India. We have a creative operation, but we also have a very robust tech set-up in Coimbatore and Hyderabad, with over a 1000 people. So, to me, India’s runway is very, very strong and the leadership is very-very strong.

Pandey: We will not let go of any meaningful avenue but we will not participate in any and every avenue the world is participating in.

Bulchandani: We are a brand as well. We have positioning. I always say Zara does cheap fashion, Chanel does high-end; they both have a market. We will not do anything and everything. We have a core and we will build on that core and the adjacencies.

Piyush Pandey as a 'chief advisor' and Piyush Pandey as a 'creative head'-what will be the major difference between the two roles?

Pandey:Not very much, because I’ve never been in a position of authority by definition. I was an advisor to my CCO anyway. I never told others to do the work this way. Now in my new role, I will do the same thing. I will caution them, mentor them and sometimes play along with them when required. So, nothing changes. The changes are for people who define their own ways of working. I have worked with people for many many years. So, I have no worries and they have no worries.

Everyone is talking about Generative AI. What is your take on AI and how do you think it is going to impact the creative industry?

Pandey: There’s one thing called artificial intelligence and another thing called real intelligence. Real intelligence lies with you. Artificial Intelligence needs to be faster, moving ahead into generating things. But it can’t do anything without real intelligence.

How is Ogilvy going to adopt Generative AI?

Bulchandani: Ogilvy is going to adopt every technology and every tool if it is in service of an idea. We are going to make sure that we have the best ideas that move consumers so that our client’s business also moves forward. If that involves AI, we will use AI. If that requires data, we are going to use data. If that requires animation, we will use that.

When the Shah Rukh Khan ad came out, AI was not part of dinner table conversations. There was an idea that a small guy was getting left behind, and to help them, we use the biggest star. Then we came to how to make that big, and that’s where it came in. It didn’t start like-let’s use AI this Diwali.

AI is based on past data. If we only think about AI without the human imagination as being the copilot to any form of technology, it will lead to mediocrity and commoditization because all brands will start looking and feeling the same. And our job at the end of the day is to make brands feel different in the marketplace so there's some distinctiveness.

Piyush, you often say you have two passions-cricket and advertising. Both are interlinked in many ways. Indian media companies have committed Rs 80,000 crore to acquire rights to telecast-stream different forms of cricket in the next five years. It appears that there would be too much cricket and too much advertising in the coming days to recover the media rights cost. How sustainable is this model?

Pandey: I think cricket will go on as India loves it. Advertising is a little suspect because of the kind of advertising they're doing these days with celebrities. In the IPL, there were three celebrities in an ad but if I ask you about the brand, you won’t remember the name. I am seriously concerned about it.

As an advisor, will you still be a driving force behind BJP’s 2024 election campaign?

Pandey (laughs):That BJP has to decide, I can’t decide. If they call me, I will definitely drive their 2024 campaign. I have done the last two elections for them. So, it’s their choice. I can’t go and say I want a hatrick.

(Transcribed by Nilanjana Basu)