Iris hires Dan Pankraz as joint regional planning director

Based in Sydney, he will be the strategic lead for key regional accounts including Adidas, Sony, and Shell.

Pankraz brings over 12 years of experience, including with Saatchi and Saatchi Sydney, BBH New York, and DDB Sydney. He was most recently deputy planning director for M&C Saatchi in Sydney.

Luke Nathans, regional business development director for Iris Asia-Pacific said Pankraz's hire was a key development in the agency's investment in its planning function globally.

“Our clients increasingly need to be behaving like publishers, community facilitators and technology pioneers in order to stay ahead of the pack and we aim to give them the tools and strategies to do this," he said. "Our recent new business wins Australia and increased regional footprint, has meant that we need the best talent working in every aspect of the business. I have no doubt that Dan, working alongside existing strategy director Paul Gage will give us the strategic firepower we need to take the agency into the future.”

Pankraz said he was excited to be joining a "highly ambitious and entrepeneurial" agency. "My aim is to keep pushing the thinking across the region so we’re creating world-class cultural platforms in all of our Asia-Pacific markets."

Iris' Sydney office forms a key hub in iris’ expanding network across Asia-Pacific, which includes offices in Singapore, Melbourne, Beijing, Shanghai, New Delhi and Jakarta.