The Shipyard has appointed Dave Sonderman to the role of chief creative officer. He comes over to the self-described “marketing engineering agency” from GSW Advertising where he served as EVP/chief creative officer.
Sonderman’s previous experience includes work on brands such as Apple, HP, PGA Tours, Victoria’s Secret, BMW Financial Services, GE Healthcare, Amgen, Eli Lilly, Frisch’s Big Boy, and Listerine. His work has been recognized by Clio, National ADDY, NY Festivals, Emmy and Cannes Lions.
Sonderman has brought his knack for insight-driven creative problem to an advertising career that spans 25 years and work across disciplines from higher education and retail, to technology and lifestyle, to healthcare and social causes. In 2016, he presented at the Lions Festival of Creativity in Cannes, joining forces with an experimental VR filmmaker from London and a psychiatrist from Harvard to expound on the art and science of empathy in creativity. His award-winning creative also includes memorable campaigns for Stryker’s knee replacement system and The Susan G. Komen breast cancer foundation.
“This is a tremendous opportunity to help shape creativity’s relationship with data science and to challenge old assumptions,” said Sonderman. “The Shipyard’s backbone of creative data science modeling, insights and media is already proven — it’s what so many other agencies are trying to figure out.“
Nikki Baker Becomes CEO At Fallon
Fallon has appointed Nikki Baker as its new CEO. Baker, who joined the creative agency in 2018 and has served as co-chief creative officer with Leslie Shaffer since 2021, succeeds Rocky Novak, who has been in the role since 2019.
Baker’s promotion to CEO comes at a time of significant momentum for the agency, including six consecutive years of growth and award-winning work.
Baker’s recent career highlights include creatively leading the Walmart partnership with the Publicis Groupe team and spearheading innovative campaigns such as the award-winning “RomCommerce” 23-episodic series and the internet-breaking Mean Girls campaign, among hundreds of other campaigns together with the brand over the past few years. Together with Shaffer, Baker has also been instrumental in elevating Fallon’s creative output for longstanding clients like Arby’s, Mattress Firm, and Front Door/American Home Shield.
“I’ve always been an admirer of Fallon, even before I joined. The chance to lead the agency is an absolute honor. Fallon is a place like no other with amazing talent and a legacy of building big, innovative, creative ideas,” said Baker. “Rocky has represented the best of Fallon. He’s been a great leader, and I couldn’t be more excited to take the reins and lead the agency through to the next chapter. With creativity at our core, we’re going to be as ambitious as ever, push boundaries, and continue embracing emerging platforms to deliver work that truly resonates in culture.”
Prior to joining Fallon six years ago, Baker held positions as creative director and art director at agencies including DDB and GSD&M, working with major brands such as McDonald’s, Southwest Airlines, and Wrigley. Her work has been recognized by... Read More