VML boss admits Sydney office pushed ‘timing limits’ with Blackspot Beacons campaign Cannes entry
The global chief creative officer of WPP digital agency VML has admitted that its Sydney office was “pushing the timing limits” by entering its Transport for NSW campaign Blackspot Beacons into Cannes last year.
Debbi Vandeven: “I’m not a believer of putting anything forward for Cannes that hasn’t run”
The public safety campaign was shortlisted at the Cannes Lions in 2015; however, it was entered without the authorisation of the government client and subsequently withdrawn by the agency.
Speaking at an event in Singapore, CCO Debbie Vandeven said agencies should be prepared to wait until their work is genuinely ready for the real world before entering it for awards shows, because Cannes is “not that important”.
It’s truly pathetic the lies agencies will peddle to win a gong
https://staging.mumbrella.com.au/cannes-lions-refuses-to-disqualify-vml-campaign-entered-without-client-approval-310460
“Digital agency VML Sydney has escaped disqualification and possible suspension from the Cannes Lions Advertising Festival, despite entering a campaign that did not have authorisation of the government client, used the logo of another public body without permission, and made a misleading claim about the work.”
“Those questions were prompted after the client told Mumbrella: “Transport for NSW did not produce the ad in question or authorise its submission in the Cannes Lions International Festival of Creativity.”
“A spokesperson for VML, which is owned by the world’s biggest advertising company holding group WPP, told Mumbrella at the time: “We were asked to remove the entry from Cannes and we have done so in consult (sic) with our client.”
These two could teach a master class in lying. Ask any employee, current or former, including myself. All these two ever talk about inside agency walls is the need to win awards. More, more, more. The bigger, the better. Every assignment is an opportunity to do award-winning work. No excuses. According to them, winning awards isn’t a false sense of purpose. It’s a major purpose.
“There’s a danger in the industry of awards taking on too much importance. And it creates a situation where good people push the deadline too much, or create something that’s not real,” he said.” Guess who’s responsible for creating the high pressure, fear-based culture that nurtures this kind of “mistake”? The C-suite.
Nice try at damage control. If they repeat this version of the story enough times, maybe people will believe it. Including themselves.
The story that keeps on bruising ego’s