Structured lateral thinker
Erich Baumgartner will become Managing Director and a member of Lowe's executive board on April 1.
Erich Baumgartner will become Managing Director and member of the Executive Board of Lowe on April 1.Erich Baumgartner hardly reveals anything about his private life or himself. The pragmatist prefers to talk about the industry or the Lowe agency, where he will officially take over from Managing Director Daniel Keller at the beginning of next month. To ensure an "organic handover", the 42-year-old has been in and out of Talstrasse since the beginning of the year. This also explains why he asked for
Baumgartner is well aware of the weaknesses of Switzerland's fourth-largest advertising agency, which is in seventh place in the creative ranking: "Lowe can exploit its potential much better." Baumgartner is convinced that every agency today has to offer more than the creative excellence that is already required. He sees this added value in comprehensive strategic consulting that has entrepreneurial expertise and an understanding of a heterogeneous clientele. "Consumers can no longer be bombarded as a universe with GRP shot. Each individual must find an individual benefit in the offers," says the Managing Director.
The always elegantly dressed businessman summarizes the key to this under the term "diversity". He understands this to mean a diverse way of thinking that seeks new paths and does not adhere to dogmas. "An approach that would be good for all agencies here in Germany in order to prevent budgets from migrating abroad," explains the strategist. Lowe's multicultural team is already a prerequisite for a polyvalent perspective. And even if the Zurich native has to come out as a "native par excellence", he wants to give the hotel an identity with vision through "structured lateral thinking". This credo also expresses Baumgartner's basic attitude as an advertiser and manager. Wherever he has worked in the marketing and communications industry, he has tried to optimize the core business through "critical questioning".
Erich Baumgartner has felt at home in this field for more than 20 years now: after working at McCann-Erickson, GGK Zurich and DDB(+WDW), among others, he switched to the client side as Head of Marketing Communications at Philips. The incentive to combine business interests with intuition led him back to his roots. The graduate marketing manager subsequently held management positions in agencies such as Advico Young & Rubicam, Publicis and Matter & Partner, where he was involved as Managing Partner.
"To look at the industry from a different angle", Baumgartner went into business for himself as a consultant in 2002. Despite his intention to explore new avenues in consulting on his own, he couldn't resist Lowe's offer: "The opportunity to strategically manage a large agency with an international environment, a broad client base and a professional team doesn't come along every day." The fact that hobbies such as reading or a good meal fall by the wayside is of little concern to him: "Lowe is what I enjoy most at the moment."
Reflects on advertising around the globe with a critical eye: Erich Baumgartner.
Carole Koch
Baumgartner is well aware of the weaknesses of Switzerland's fourth-largest advertising agency, which is in seventh place in the creative ranking: "Lowe can exploit its potential much better." Baumgartner is convinced that every agency today has to offer more than the creative excellence that is already required. He sees this added value in comprehensive strategic consulting that has entrepreneurial expertise and an understanding of a heterogeneous clientele. "Consumers can no longer be bombarded as a universe with GRP shot. Each individual must find an individual benefit in the offers," says the Managing Director.
The always elegantly dressed businessman summarizes the key to this under the term "diversity". He understands this to mean a diverse way of thinking that seeks new paths and does not adhere to dogmas. "An approach that would be good for all agencies here in Germany in order to prevent budgets from migrating abroad," explains the strategist. Lowe's multicultural team is already a prerequisite for a polyvalent perspective. And even if the Zurich native has to come out as a "native par excellence", he wants to give the hotel an identity with vision through "structured lateral thinking". This credo also expresses Baumgartner's basic attitude as an advertiser and manager. Wherever he has worked in the marketing and communications industry, he has tried to optimize the core business through "critical questioning".
Erich Baumgartner has felt at home in this field for more than 20 years now: after working at McCann-Erickson, GGK Zurich and DDB(+WDW), among others, he switched to the client side as Head of Marketing Communications at Philips. The incentive to combine business interests with intuition led him back to his roots. The graduate marketing manager subsequently held management positions in agencies such as Advico Young & Rubicam, Publicis and Matter & Partner, where he was involved as Managing Partner.
"To look at the industry from a different angle", Baumgartner went into business for himself as a consultant in 2002. Despite his intention to explore new avenues in consulting on his own, he couldn't resist Lowe's offer: "The opportunity to strategically manage a large agency with an international environment, a broad client base and a professional team doesn't come along every day." The fact that hobbies such as reading or a good meal fall by the wayside is of little concern to him: "Lowe is what I enjoy most at the moment."
Reflects on advertising around the globe with a critical eye: Erich Baumgartner.
Carole Koch
