DDB strengthens creative leadership

Internationally recognised creative leader Matty Burton has been appointed by DDB Group Aotearoa NZ as its first Group Chief Creative Officer. 

In the newly created role, Burton will bring extensive local and international experience to drive the creative output across the Group’s four agencies – DDB, TRACK, Tribal and Mango.

With over 20 years of creative agency experience, Burton joins from Google where he led their Asia-Pacific innovation team from Sydney. Prior to that, he co-founded Special Group’s Australian offices, spent time at Droga5 in New York and led TBWA in Australia, which tripled in size during his tenure. 

He has multiple awards to his name, including more than 50 Cannes Lions and Effies.

Although an Australian at heart, Burton was Creative Group Head at Saatchi & Saatchi, New Zealand earlier in his career and his wife is a proud Kiwi.  

Burton says: “I am excited to be ‘coming home’ to an agency with creativity at its core. Working at Google as their APAC Creative Chief was an incredible experience and a career highlight but there’s a difference between working somewhere where creativity is one part of the process, versus an environment where creativity is infused at every step of the journey.”

DDB Group Aotearoa NZ Chief Executive Officer, Priya Patel says: “Matty’s diverse multidisciplinary experience as a creative leader is fairly unique and we believe that with his skills and the existing capability in our building, we’ll be unstoppable. We’re so excited about his obvious talent in both the creative and innovation space, and the freshness of thinking he’ll bring to our work.”

DDB Aotearoa NZ Executive Creative Director, Gary Steele, has also been promoted to Chief Creative Officer.

Steele says: “Creative people only want two things – to work in a fantastic place where creativity is part of the DNA and to work with talented people. I have been fortunate enough to have both of those here at DDB. Then you add in Matty, one of the most talented and humble people I have ever met. It can only get better and I am looking forward to all the great things we will do together.”

Patel says: “Gary has made an outstanding contribution over the past two years within DDB. He has been a driving force behind some of the agency’s most famous and innovative work. Most importantly, he is a wonderful human who deserves recognition.”

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