Founder and managing director of The Works depart amidst Capgemini integration

Nathan Jolly

August 9, 2024 1:11

Founder and managing director of The Works depart amidst Capgemini integration

The founder of The Works, Damian Pincus, is leaving the business he launched 21 years ago as the agency is “in the process” of being integrated into Capgemini, while managing director Julie Dormand has also departed.

The news comes just days after The Works strategy partner, Douglas Nicol, also announced his exit following the Capgemini move.

“This week marks my last week at The Works,” Pincus wrote on Linkedin.

“After 21 years of building a business, I have loved working in, it’s now time to move on. With my amazing business partners Douglas Nicol and Kevin Macmillan, we built an envious reputation over the years from humble beginnings, founded in a campervan. The Works has given me 21 years of pure fun, there’s been ups and downs, but I’ve been fortunate to have worked with some of the best people in the business and some amazing clients.

“At the beating heart of the agency has been the culture, which has been consistently recognised as a top 5 ‘Best Place to Work’ and I couldn’t be prouder of our win last week for Best Culture at Mumbrella Awards. I can thank Julie Dormand for really holding tightly to this culture and continuing to improve what we have done year on year.”

Dormand said earlier this week: “I went to The Works for a few months, and stayed a few years. I stayed because of the kind and fun spirit in everyone. With a change in direction for the agency, I’ve chosen to put up the sails and leave port again.”

She also noted that “winning the Mumbrella culture award last week was the best leaving gift possible”.

On Tuesday night, Capgemini told Mumbrella in a statement: “As we are in the process of integrating The Works into Capgemini AUNZ, we are preparing our organisation to ensure we meet the evolving needs of our clients and the market.”

On Wednesday morning, Nicol announced he is leaving the business after 18 years.

“After selling the business to Capgemini in 2017 we have been bringing the various Capgemini skills closer and closer together to offer clients a wider range of services,” Nicol wrote in a LinkedIn post.

“This feels like the right time to hand over to the next generation of awesome young leaders in our business.”

Capgemini also told Mumbrella that Jerome Gaslain, creative partner, will “oversee the team as they continue to focus on delivering great outcomes to our clients”.

Gaslain joined The Works just four months ago, in the newly-created role. His 15 years of experience saw him work with iconic brands including Coke Zero, Nike, Gucci, Levi’s Toyota, Vodafone and many more. He joined the agency after four years working at AKQA Amsterdam and The&Partnership London.

The Works was founded in 2002, and has collaborated with prominent clients such as Vivid, Optus, News Corp, Visit Canberra, ING, Sanitarium, Tata Beverages, Archie Rose Distilling Co, The Smith Family, and Qantas.

In 2017, it was acquired by ASX-listed digital services consultancy, RXP Services. Then, in 2020, RXP Services was acquired by Capgemini, in a bid to grow the latter’s market position.