Alan Pafenbach—of Volkswagen “Drivers Wanted” Fame—Will Lead and Grow Team on Heels of SapientNitro’s Global Chrysler Win
BOSTON, April 7, 2010—SapientNitro has announced that Alan Pafenbach, one of the creative minds behind the award-winning Volkswagen “Drivers Wanted” ad campaign, is joining the company as a creative director in Boston.
His appointment coincides with SapientNitro’s rapid growth. The company in February won all digital duties globally across Chrysler’s Dodge, Jeep, and Ram brands.
Pafenbach brings with him an array of expertise for clients, including strategic insight, creative development, concept testing, and production of television, video, radio, digital applications, and web experiences.
Before joining SapientNitro, Pafenbach managed the global creative efforts for Yahoo! while at OgilvyOne New York. Before that, he worked on a major brand relaunch for Hewlett Packard at Goodby Silverstein & Partners. From 1988-2005, Pafenbach led creative on variety of accounts at Arnold Worldwide in Boston. During the latter ten of those years, he served as VP and executive creative director on the Volkswagen account.
“Alan is a great addition to our top-notch team,” said Chris Davey, senior vice president and head of SapientNitro Boston. “His work is so resonant that it often becomes part of cultural lore. He inspires great creative output. We hope that his arrival will encourage other talented marketers to join our growing team.”
Pafenbach is a veritable tour de force in the ad industry, recognized as one of the most awarded creative professionals in Massachusetts. His trophy case includes Cannes Lions and One Show awards, among others. Pafenbach’s creative touch can be seen in ad campaigns for Goodyear Tire, Hewlett Packard, McDonald’s, and Yahoo!
“I’ve gotten to know the SapientNitro team over the last couple of months, and they truly get where the market is headed,” Pafenbach said. “From TV advertising to online video to social—and all the technology in between—SapientNitro is ahead of the curve, as the world becomes increasingly digital and channels inter-connected. We’re going to deliver fresh ideas and business results to our clients, and hopefully win some awards in the process.”
Pafenbach will report to vice president Eric Healy and will partner with fellow creative director Barry Fiske on overseeing creative on the Chrysler account, in particular the Dodge and Ram brands, which will be serviced out of Boston.
SapientNitro Boston is hiring 17 people this spring, including project management, visual design, Flash, copywriting, and information architect positions. Candidates can review job postings and apply at: http://www.sapient.com/careers.
SapientNitro was formed last year following Sapient’s acquisition of Nitro Group. Headquartered in Boston, SapientNitro works with many New England clients, including CVS, Liberty Mutual, PerkinElmer, Staples, Talbots, and Travelers. SapientNitro was recently named to Unilever's global digital roster and tapped as lead agency for Target's new e-commerce platform.
About SapientNitro
SapientNitroSM, part of Sapient®, is the world's first customer experience company. We create and engineer highly relevant experiences that accelerate business growth and fuel brand advocacy for our clients. By combining multi-channel marketing, multi-channel commerce, and the technology that binds them, we influence customer behavior across the spectrum of content, communication, and commerce channels, resulting in deeper, more meaningful relationships between customers and brands. SapientNitro services global leaders such as Citi, The Coca-Cola Company, Mars, Singapore Airlines, Target, and Vodafone through our operations in North America, Europe, and Asia-Pacific. For more information, visit www.sapientnitro.com or follow us on Twitter @sapientnitro.