A bang for the buck at Rod: David Schärer leaves, new management team is formed
With Tiffany Bottlang and Alessandro Reintges, two longstanding employees are taking over the management of the Rod agency. In the future, Pablo Koerfer will concentrate on his position as Farner Co-CEO; Regula Bührer Fecker will become Chief Strategy Officer at Farner. In future, David Schärer will be responsible for the brand world of an international brand as Chief Marketing Officer.
Rod is undergoing significant changes within its management structure: as a press release announced Wednesday noon, longtime employees Tiffany Bottlang and Alessandro Reintges are taking over as managing directors of the agency.
Regula Bührer Fecker, founding partner and until now chief strategist of Rod, will become chief strategy officer of Farner - the agency group through which Rod was acquired in 2019. Pablo Koerfer, who held dual roles as Rod managing director and Farner co-CEO following Farner's acquisition of Rod, will focus more on the latter position. And David Schärer, also a founding partner of Rod, is "switching sides": in the future, he will lead an as yet unnamed "global brand" as CMO.
"Agency in the very best hands"
"We have been planning the generation change for some time. Now the time is ripe. Tiffany and Alessandro have successfully led their teams for several years. With them, we know the agency is in the very best hands," Regula Bührer Fecker is quoted as saying in the press release. As far as her own position is concerned, she is more than happy about the upcoming changes: "I am looking forward to working as a strategist for the whole group and to contributing my experience both on mandates and in the further development of the agency group at home and abroad," comments Bührer Fecker.
Pablo Koerfer, co-CEO of Farner since summer 2022, will also remain closely involved with Rod's projects in his overarching role within the agency group. "Thanks to the internal succession solution, we can plan the handover gradually. This ensures continuity for our customers and employees," Koerfer classifies. The two will continue to support the new Managing Directors Tiffany Bottlang and Alessandro Reintges on the Rod Board of Directors.
David Schärer takes on global CMO role
David Schärer is leaving the agency at the end of June to take on a chief marketing officer role for an international brand. "Rod was the most formative phase of my professional career so far. It is therefore not easy for me to say goodbye. But after more than 20 years of an agency career, it's time for me to move on to something new. I'm looking forward to rediscovering the world of communications from a brand perspective and taking responsibility for the global positioning of a brand," says Schärer. He also intends to remain a member of Rod's Board of Directors.
"For us, this is a matter of the heart".
The new Managing Directors, Tiffany Bottlang and Alessandro Reintges, are ready for the challenges that lie ahead: "We are really looking forward to the new task. Because Rod is an affair of the heart for us. And with a great team behind us, we will continue to create Big Bangs for our customers on a regular basis," they say. Tiffany Bottlang - who has been at Bürglistrasse for seven years - was responsible for numerous campaigns for Rod as co-head of consulting, including the one to combat the Corona pandemic for the Federal Office of Public Health.
Alessandro Reintges has been giving the agency's work "the unmistakable Rod touch" for six years. Since 2020, he has been co-head of creation and joined Tiffany Bottlang on the executive board. Together, the two have not only realized many award-winning projects in recent years, but also, by their own account, have an above-average pitch record.
"We are very proud that talents from our own ranks are taking over," Pablo Koerfer is pleased about the internal succession. "We are also very happy for David. And congratulate him warmly on his new exciting task."
