Tara McKenty has joined BMF in the newly created dual role of chief innovation officer and executive creative director (ECD).
McKenty, who is set to join BMF in July, has spent the past 16 years working in the creative industry across the APAC region, most recently as the creative head at Google for nine years.
McKenty said BMF has an incredibly strong creative reputation, but it’s not just the agency’s strong creative reputation that excites her - it’s also the culture.
"Not only can they make world-famous campaigns for brands big and small, but they do it with humility and kindness," said McKenty.
“I have valued my time and learnt a lot working in tech, but I have missed agency life and the people our industry attracts.
"I am excited to be returning, it feels like a homecoming of sorts, and I can’t wait to start this next chapter of my career with my new BMF family!”
In conjunction with McKenty’s appointment, BMF has made a series of internal creative promotions including the promotion of David Fraser to the role of joint-ECD
Fraser joined BMF in 2014 and has been leading the ALDI Australia and Tourism Tasmania accounts for the past nine and four years. In his new role, Fraser will work closely with McKenty and BMF’s chief creative officer Alex Derwin to lead both BMF’s creative department and creative output.
Fraser said BMF has always felt like home.
"It’s a caring family full of smart, talented, and ambitious people. And I’ve loved growing into a weird uncle here. To be asked to help build on the BMF legacy and take it to new places with Tara is a fantastic opportunity,” said Fraser.
While leading Tourism Tasmania’s creative output, Fraser has worked closely with associate creative directors Rees Steel and Casey Schweikert, who have also been promoted to creative directors.
Derwin said McKenty has made an enviable amount of incredible work both in her time at Google, and at her previous agencies.
"The skillsets she brings, her knowledge of tech and culture, her entrepreneurial spirit, and her boundless creative energy makes her the perfect person to take BMFs output to the next level," said Derwin.
“Dave has been leading our two most creatively awarded accounts, he knows the agency inside out, and leads with compassion and intelligence. With Casey and Rees also taking a big, well-deserved step up, we’re well set up for the future.”
Stephen McArdle, CEO at BMF, said McKenty is a truly rare talent.
"As one of the first brilliant creative minds to be lured into the world of big tech, she’s got enviable experience in both creatively led innovation and tech enabled CX," said McArdle.
"When you couple everything Tara’s learned at Google over the past 10-years with a creative agency that has momentum, belief, and ambition, great things are bound to happen.
“We’re also incredibly fortunate to have more than our fair share of world-class talent already in the BMF building. With Tara’s arrival, we’ve taken the opportunity to recognise and elevate some of that outstanding talent and set ourselves up for our next phase of creative exploration and growth.”
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