WPP has named Torrence Boone as CEO of Project Da Vinci, the new global agency formed by WPP for Dell last December in a move to consolidate its advertising efforts from 800 agencies.
As Project Da Vinci’s first CEO, Boone will oversee the agency’s aim to bring together creative with results. Boone, who previously served as president of Digitas Boston, will be based in the agency’s New York headquarters and will report directly to Sir Martin Sorrell, CEO of WPP.
Da Vinci currently has offices in New York, Miami, San Francisco and Austin, TX, as well as in London, Singapore, Beijing and Sao Paolo, Brazil. It has hired more than 500 employees in various office locations, including Chiat/Day Apple veteran Ken Segall as executive creative director.
Casey Jones, VP of global marketing at Dell, initiated Da Vinci to combine creativity and business measurement after he joined the company last year and learned that the manufacturer was using 800 agencies for various creative services. He wanted to bring the entire external marketing communications function under one profit and loss statement.
In December 2007, Dell said it would invest $4.5 billion in billings in Project Da Vinci over the next three years.
