FCB Global taps Omnicom vet Tina Allan for new data science role

Interpublic Group creative network FCB has poached Omnicom vet Tina Allan to take on a newly created data science role for the global network. 

Allan, who joins as global partner and head of data science and connections at FCB, will be responsible for creating a global strategy and approach for the network’s data and technology-fueled creative campaigns. 

She will also create new external data partnerships for FCB while strengthening existing tools and capabilities, further integrate FCB’s media operations and get the network more deeply connected with Acxiom and Kinesso, IPG’s data and technology units, in partnership with FCB chief strategy officer Nigel Jones. 

Allan will report to FCB Worldwide CEO Carter Murray, and work closely with FCB Global chief creative officer Susan Credle. She will build a global team with diverse skillsets from across the network that integrates marketing science with media, CRM and branding, allowing global teams to tap into specialist talent. 

In a statement, Allan said she is excited about the role because “I’m as passionate about creativity as I am about the data science, and that’s the culture of FCB.” 

She added: “It’s evident in the amazing work, the results and the momentum here. Creativity fueled by data and tech. That is what FCB brings to the table at scale globally with this new role—that’s the game changer and the future forward.”

Allan comes to FCB from Omnicom, where she was most recently managing director for data solutions at BBDO New York, overseeing data-driven strategies for clients including Visa and Mars. Prior to that Allan was at Omnicom CRM agency RAPP for 20 years, where she was most recently US chief client officer. 

At FCB, Allan will work closely with Credle and the creative department to use data to fuel insights and creative campaigns. The agency’s “Whopper Detour” campaign for Burger King, which used geofencing technology to offer discounts on Whoppers to people nearby one of its competitors, is a good example of the kind of work that can come from creativity and data working hand-in-hand. 

Other data-driven campaigns by FCB include “Project Understood” for the Canadian Down Syndrome Society, which is working with Google to collect voice samples so people with Down Syndrome can be better understood by voice assistants; and “Go Back to Africa” for Black & Abroad, which hijacks racist Tweets in real-time by showing Black travelers visiting the continent to reclaim the slur.

“We want to be an agency that knows how to do timeless work and timely work: activate business short-term and build brand-long term,” Credle told Campaign US. “We believe that the data, the math, is what helps us really do that timely work in an amazing way. Tina will help us figure out where to be, what people are saying and how that correlates with decisions we make.”

FCB created this new role for Allan specifically “because we have experienced, with our clients, the outstanding creative results you get when you bring together data and technology in innovative ways,” said Carter Murray, FCB Worldwide CEO, in a statement. 

“We want to continue to do so with even greater impact, so we sought out the best in the business to help us do that,” he added. “Tina is an incredibly talented leader known for her ability to work closely with creative leaders and clients alike to humanise data and build high-value business solutions.”

(This article first appeared on CampaignLive.com)