Ogilvy CEO John Seifert talks ‘refounding’, Martin Sorrell, #MeToo, China, awards, AI, bad clients and consultancies
In his most in-depth interview ever, the worldwide Ogilvy worldwide CEO John Seifert – who has been at the agency for 39 years – discusses a wide range of topics with Mumbrella’s Dean Carroll
Seifert looked back at his 39 years at Ogilvy
To kick off, you dropped out from college and worked your way up at Ogilvy from junior account manager 39 years ago to worldwide CEO today. Can you talk us through that journey and some of the greatest and worst moments along the way?
“I really am a product of the Ogilvy system. I was fortunate enough to have a family friend, who worked for David Ogilvy. She just had an instinct that what I would love and what I would learn from was there in Ogilvy.
“So I was fortunate enough to get a summer job and to be mentored by some incredibly talented people. I started at the office in Los Angeles and then got the opportunity to go to Chicago and later Bangkok, Singapore and then ultimately New York.
