They seek them here, they seek them there

By IRENE CHAPPLE

A restructuring which found few Wellington staff prepared to leave their home town has forced Saatchi & Saatchi Auckland into a recruiting drive.

The rejig has resulted in the Wellington office - long seen as the agency's creative hub - cut staff from 40 to 25.

The agency's new management team, headed by former Colenso BBDO creative director Mike O'Sullivan and former Generator chief executive Andrew "Rocky" Stone, drove the long-expected restructuring.

O'Sullivan said he was surprised so few took up the offer to move to Auckland, which was where most of the agency's clients were based.

However, Tom Eslinger, the agency's award-winning interactive head, and his team of creatives had been prepared to move north.

O'Sullivan is looking to hire at least five new staff, with the search going transtasman.

The highest-profile redundancy was Len Cheeseman, who had been with the agency 12 years after being wooed to New Zealand from Britain.

Cheeseman - who last made headlines after a public spat with former staffer Maggie Mouat - was yesterday digging a trench at his Wellington home after having been sent on "gardening leave".

Cheeseman rebuffed suggestions that he would follow in the footsteps of former Saatchi folk such as Howard Greive, Kim Thorp and Mike Hutcheson by setting up his own consultancy.

Cheeseman already does project work but would now "mix my life up" with fishing in Vanuatu first on the agenda.

John Fisher, who equalled first ranking with colleague John Plimmer in CampaignBrief's best Australasian creatives 2002, has also taken redundancy.

Plimmer has remained to lead the Wellington creative team, serving clients such as Whittakers, NZ Post and the Office of the Retirement Commissioner. O'Sullivan is heading the Auckland creative team, serving clients such as the transtasman Westpac account, TVNZ and Telecom.

Other staff changes are being finalised and, eventually, the agency's three floors will be downsized to two while Auckland will expand its space.

The restructuring came about because of the increasingly Auckland-centric client base.

O'Sullivan said the constant flying of suits and creatives up to Auckland was illogical and impractical.

Making Auckland the leading office, therefore, would cater better to clients' needs.