ooks like it is hungry. The agency, that plays second fiddle to only O&M; in terms of creative reputation (according to Brand Equity�s The Ad agency Reckoner 2004), has hired eight new professionals from different ad agencies, while its �celebrity� national creative director and executive vice-president, Prasoon Joshi, has been elevated to the position of regional creative director for South Asia and South- East Asia.

The new faces in the creative team of McCann Erickson include Uday Parkar, Shamik Sengupta, Ferzad Variyava from Ambience Publicis (Mumbai) and Manish Bhatt and Raghu Bhat, earlier creative directors at the same agency (the two have worked on accounts such as Parachute, Nerolac Allscapes, Planet M, Nutrela, Whitehall Whiskey, Tata Press Yellow Pages, Elle 18 and Sil; they are also the brains behind the Respect the National Anthem film in 2003), Neil Roy (from O&M;, Chennai), Nima Namchu and Gautam Mehta from Capital Advertising and Euro RSCG, Kuala Lumpur, respectively. Joshi�s elevation is being described by agency president Santosh Desai as a move to facilitate McCann�s crack at the top slot. "International recognition of the agency�s flair to create outstanding work provides the thrust to ramp up its business," he claims. The new �boys� have been roped in to beef up the creative resources. ... more