Anita Davis
May 14, 2010

Tribal DDB ECD Dirk Eschenbacher to "step back" from his role

BEIJING - Dirk Eschenbacher (pictured), executive creative director and managing director of Tribal DDB Asia-Pacific, is set to take a "step back" from his role at the agency in order to pursue a doctorate at the Central Academy of Fine Arts in Beijing later this year.

Dirk Eschenbacher
Dirk Eschenbacher
Eschenbacher is to begin courses at the Academy in September and will ease off his responsibilities at Tribal during the length of his studies, he said.

Eschenbacher said that the three-year programme focuses on visual communications and creativity. He will look to work part time in the office for the first few semesters before focusing largely on his thesis ahead of his graduation.

“I’m not quite sure how much time this will consume, I just need to see in the future how much time I can spend on our clients and on studying,” he said. “I might just focus on one client in Beijing. We’re not sure what the arrangement is going to look like, but we’re all happy and I’m happy with DDB and I have no intention of relinquishing my role now.”

The agency could not confirm whether Eschenbacher would retain the titles of ECD and MD of Tribal DDB during the course of his studies, nor could it comment on whether additional creative management would be put in place while Eschenbacher divides his attention between the office and his studies.

According to Eschenbacher’s online profile, he has held the role at Tribal DDB since November 2007, when he joined from OgilvyOne. At Ogilvy, Eschenbacher elevated to the role of regional creative director.

Of his plans following his studies at the Academy, Eschenbacher said he would like to be a lecturer as a creative academic and perhaps write books in an effort to “make sense of Chinese creativity.”

“A huge investment is being put into China to move from a factory to a studio, and go from ‘made in China’ to ‘designed in China’. There is an insignificant amount of creativity in China compared to the West, and that’s going to change over the next 10 years, and I want to be at the forefront of that,” he said.

Eschenbacher has spoken and judged creative events in the past, including at the 2010 Asian Marketing Effectiveness Festival, where he was a judge.
Source:
Campaign China

Related Articles

Just Published

1 day ago

Agency Report Card 2024: Ogilvy

Ogilvy APAC celebrated a strong creative year in 2024, clinching top regional honours at Cannes Lions. Yet operational headwinds, particularly in China, tested its resilience and reshaped its growth strategy.

1 day ago

Campaign Global Agency of the Year Awards 2024: ...

Ogilvy and UM win global network of the year awards for creative and media respectively, while Special agency in New Zealand earns Asia-Pacific network of the year.

1 day ago

Apple Watch’s heart story strikes a chord in Japan

Apple’s new Japan campaign tells the real-life story of a heavy metal fan whose Apple Watch alerts help detect a life-threatening heart condition just in time.

1 day ago

2025 Cannes Contenders: RGA creatives weigh in

A ubiquitous surname, a sexually transmitted infection, the printing of memories and an animal god that helps gamers might all bring fame glory to campaigns in Cannes next week.