James Hurman joins Ogilvy & Mather Shanghai as planning partner

Hurman (pictured) was recently ranked among the top two planners in the world by The Directory Big Won Creative Rankings 2011.

He is also the author of The Case for Creativity, a book about the link between creativity and effectiveness published in 2011.

In his new role at Ogilvy, Hurman will lead the agency's planning team to develop large-scale, national initiatives for brands including Unilever’s Dove, Pond’s and Coca-Cola's Burn.

Before relocating from New Zealand to Shanghai, Hurman was the head of planning at Colenso BBDO Auckland for five years.

During his tenure there, the agency won 21 Cannes Lions for creativity and 41 local and international effectiveness awards at both the Asian Marketing Effectiveness Awards and New Zealand Effies.

"You’d be hard pressed to find a more passionate advocate than James of the indisputable link between creativity and business results," said Edward Bell, group planning director of O&M Shanghai. "His vision, experience, ideas and charisma will enrich our planning culture."