3rd chief in 5 yrs, will Dhunji Wadia last a term as long as the US presidency?

Under vice chairman and creative chief, Sam Ahmed, Rediffusion Y&R was supposed to become the "George Clooney of advertising" by end 2013. In an interview with a trade site, Ahmed made this prediction brimming over with confidence and maybe just a little hubris. However by end September that year, Ahmed himself was out — its unclear if he signed off with Good Night and Good Luck — following an all too familiar pattern when it came to Rediffusion and its senior leadership.
The industry, for better or worse, will never know what the "George Clooney of advertising" would have looked like since the agency's new president, Dhunji Wadia, has goals that appear less ambitious, even if they are more easily comprehensible.

His Number 1 priority is "The creative work. It's the final output that moves the consumer. Once it is in place, good things will happen. It will positively impact the health of our brands, the agency's fortunes, new business acquisitions and taking better care of our people." But there's a fairly large elephant in the room or a horde of them tramping out of it, if you'd like a more appropriate metaphor.

Rediffusion has shuffled through several senior leaders over the last half decade or so: Mahesh Chauhan, D Rajappa and Sam Ahmed. Wadia claims to be not phased by the so called revolving door syndrome: "In my case, I'm very happy to have been able to walk in through that door. Most of my career has been built in large agency set ups, so I don't see any reason why I can't shut the door for at least as long as the industry average!"

Wadia does have a couple of transitions under his belt already. He speaks fondly of having turned around JWT's Bangalore operations — the branch won Nike and Levi's on his watch — and he headed the Mumbai branch when it picked up a couple of trophies at Cannes. "It wasn't just about the creative but how we put it all together," he says. He's spent the last few years turning around Everest Brand Solutions, making it a profitable shop and now, like many former heads who did well at Everest, he has a tougher peak to climb: Rediffusion Y&R. Rediffusion has a rich history and legacy.

The agency is credited with playing a huge role in building brand Airtel: designing the first logo, creating its signature tune and iconic campaigns with AR Rahman. With Colgate too, the agency built some memorable if formulaic campaigns around concepts like the Ring of Confidence. However it's been in a slump since the late 2000s.

Airtel and Colgate left: depending on who you ask, it was either a pressure tactic to make managing director Diwan Arun Nanda more amenable to selling his majority stake to WPP or a sudden realisation by both clients that their accounts could be better served elsewhere.

Speaking of whether the agency has been able to come to terms with the loss Wadia says, "We went past the financial setback years ago. The emotional loss we have learnt to live with." A former associate of the agency says with a touch of regret, "Hindsight being 20:20, Rediff lost the mojo somewhere when it missed the opportunity to become a WPP company. It's now a battle of leaders. I don't see it getting assistance from Y&R in the last few years. It's a bit of a question mark."

What Rediffusion needs according to industry peers is a unique identity. Without a couple of former flagship clients it runs the risk of being just another agency with little to set it apart. Says L&K Saatchi & Saatchi's Anil Nair who is an admirer of the agency's legacy, "Its biggest problem is the identity crisis regarding what it is and what it wants to stand for. Airtel was the last memorable piece of work produced."

According to a former adman, "Ogilvy makes advertising that's mostly India and rustic. JWT's historic strength is planning. Ulka is known for creating advertising that looks like the brief. Rediffusion needs to first write a brand blueprint for itself. It used to be an agency that created fresh ideas but it hasn't evolved."

Wadia intends setting it to rights with a few tricks he used in Everest. For one, replacing the vertical structures of "levels reporting in to levels" with cross functional teams with a leader who could be from any discipline: not necessarily account management. He believes, "It adds accountability and responsibility."

Keeping it nimble and more competitive, he intends pitting Rediffusion Y&R against Everest (which he also runs) in pitch scenarios, provided the client doesn't mind. He hopes to rekindle Rediffusion's original mojo: big enough to deliver but small enough care. And finally he'd like to publicise and showcase its work better. Maybe the agency will never be the George Clooney of advertising. At this stage, even being the Liam Neeson, an aged warhorse seemingly impervious to beatings would work just fine.