Co-readers
My vision is far from dogmatic. That’s the reason I have asked a number of experts in the field of branding, marketing, communications and design to participate and share their feedback with me. Hereby I present their profiles.
Experts
- Rodney Fitch
- Nicholas Ind
- Jean Noël Kapferer
- Roland van Kralingen
- Andy Mosmans
- Roland van der Vorst
- Joe Wang
- Dinghai Jin
Rodney Fitch
Founder of the British design agency Fitch & Co in 1972, in 1982 the first product design company in the world to obtain a full Stock Exchange listing. In the 1980s, it led the design industry, with a broad international portfolio of multi-disciplinary projects. In 1990, Rodney Fitch received a CBE for his influence on the British design industry.
In 1994, he left Fitch & Co. and founded a smaller, more focused design firm specializing in branded retail, entertainment environments, and communications for clients in Europe and Asia Pacific. In November 2003, he returned to Fitch & Co. as Chairman and CEO. By then the agency was owned by the WPP Group. It is known for its innovative work the world over with 18 studios in 10 countries and employing 500 people.
In a distinguished career spanning nearly forty years, Rodney Fitch has been prominent in the evolution of design education and the arts. He is the longest-serving member of the Governing Body of the University of the Arts, London. He has been a member of the Council of the Royal College of Art, a President of the Designers and Art Directors Association and a President of the Chartered Society of Designers.
- Company
- Chairman of Fitch
- Website
- www.fitch.com
Nicholas Ind
Nicholas Ind (49) is a writer and partner at consulting firm Equilibrium Consulting. Previously he ran the brand consultancy of Icon Medialab’s in Sweden. Before that Nicholas had his own branding consultancy in the UK, was director of a design group and worked as an account director in advertising. He has worked on projects for Manpower, British Council, Foreign and Commonwealth Office, Ford of Europe, Inland Revenue, The Economist Group, Wallenius Wilhelmsen, StepStone, TNS, Telenor, The Swedish National Theatre and Unicef.
Nicholas is the author of seven books including The Corporate Image, The Corporate Brand and Living the Brand. His latest book Inspiration (2004) is about creativity in organizations.
Nicholas has a BA degree in English Literature and History and an MBA. He is a former Director of the Design Business Association, a member of the advisory board of Corporate Reputation Review, the editorial board of the Journal of Brand Management and an Industrial Fellow at Kingston University. He teaches on branding and communication at Stockholm University, the Nordic Brand Academy, EURIB in Rotterdam and BI-Oslo. He was a founder member of the Medinge Group - an international branding think tank.
- Company
- Equilibrium Consulting
- www.equilibriumconsulting.com
- Website
- www.nicholasind.com
- Publications
- www.nicholasind.com/books/books.html
Jean Noël Kapferer
Jean-Noël Kapferer is the European authority on branding. He is also one of the world most renowned specialists on the subject with a tremendous influence. Thanks to his unique position as a professor of marketing at HEC Graduate School of Management in Paris as well as being strategic consultant for firms in various sectors, he has been able to contribute significantly to the realization of the importance of the brand for companies and the operational management of brands.
He has written ten books about communication and brands, the most well known being Strategic Brand Management and [Re]inventing the brand. His work has been translated in many languages. He publishes his analysis, research studies and viewpoints in leading academic journals, magazines and financial newspapers in Europe and America.
He is a highly reputed lecturer on brand management issues, leading specialised seminars for companies and their executives at the business school
- Company
- HEC Paris, Graduate School of Management
- Website
- www.kapferer.com
- Publications
- www.kapferer.com/publications.php
Roland van Kralingen
Roland van Kralingen (60) is one of the few internationally renowned marketinguru’s from Holland. He studied in Britain and holds a MBA. After working as strategy director at advertising agencies he started TBWA in The Netherlands and Spain. In 1986 he became member of the board of TBWA International en worked in France, Japan, England, America, Germany en Spain. Being an international marketingstrategist he advised companies like Nissan, Beiersdorf, Mölnlycke en Gervais Danone.
In 1993 he was co-founder of Positioneringsgroep, one of the leading Dutch agencies for companies who seek advice on the positioning of brands and brand management. In 2005 he started a new agency, High Value. In 2007 he started with his son Rogier and three other partners Innoa, which specializes in innovation management for markets & brands en companies.
Van Kralingen is author of books on marketing(trends) like Superbrands, BrandWorld, Make Dust or Eat Dust and De Groeimotor.
- Company
- Chairman of Innoa
- Website
- www.innoa.eu
- Publications
- www.innoa.eu/publicaties.html
Andy Mosmans
Andy Mosmans (41) is director of the Dutch advertising firm ARA Groep, part of Omnicom. He studied corporate economics and specialized in Marketing Management. He started out at Philips and then moved to advertising and branding. First at Dutch agency FHV BBDO and later FHV Group. Andy worked as advisor for well established companies like GE, Gillette, Apple, Douwe Egberts, Dutch Ministry of Housing, Spatial Planning and the Environment (VROM), The City of Rotterdam, KPN, Ahold, TNT, Randstad, Rabobank, Campina, MTV and Zwitserleven.
Andy Mosmans writes columns for newspaper Het Financieele Dagblad en publishes regularly in (international) trademagazines. He is (guest) lecturer at the postgraduate course Brand Management at the Royal University of Groningen, the Erasmus University of Rotterdam, Rotterdam School of Management, Nyenrode Business University.
Well known books of Andy Mosmans are Merkenbeleid, Corporate Reputatie and Ondernemingssucces.
- Company
- Director ARA groep
- Website
- www.ara.nl
- Publications
- www.managementboek.nl/auteur_info.asp?AuteurID=371
Roland van der Vorst
Dr. Roland van der Vorst (38) is an expert in branding, entrepreneur, scientist and publicist. He started his career in 1997 as an research executive at FHV BBDO, one of the biggest marketing and advertising agencies in The Netherlands. In 2001 he was promoted to be a board member at the age of 31. In 2005 he founded the Dutch branding and communication agency THEY.
He has been named as one of the seven most influential talents in The Netherlands. His doctoral thesis was on brand management. He was co-author of the book Brand management. He is board member of SWOCC, the foundation for scientific research on commercial communication of the University of Amsterdam. In September 2007 his first book for a broader public will be published, called ‘Curiosity, how we are seduced every day’.
- Company
- Director THEY
- Website
- www.they.nl
- Publications
- www.managementboek.nl/auteur_info.asp?AuteurID=523
