Y&R Creates Practice for Technology And Business Brands

Y&R announced today the formation of a new practice focused on technology and business brands. Building on the principles and success of the agency’s Healthcare practice established in the fall of 2016, the specialised discipline leverages the agency’s deep expertise in brands that offer complex technical products and services. Y&R’s Joe Rivas will lead the new venture as President, Y&R Technology and Business. He will also continue his responsibilities as WPP Global Client Leader of Dell.

Under Rivas’s leadership, the new practice will collaborate with teams across Y&R and WPP’s global network to provide clients with thoroughly integrated b-to-b and b-to-c communications solutions.

Like the healthcare practice, the Technology and Technology practice serves clients who share common challenges and brings Y&R’s shared institutional knowledge, as well as the most experienced talent in the sector to the table. Through the practice, the agency will offer proprietary tools, including a B2B brand analysis that exists within BAV (BrandAsset Valuator), and a social listening capability that provides insights on the content behaviors of business decision makers, as well as access to WPP resources.

“After seeing the value our Healthcare practice has for clients, we see a like opportunity to offer business and technology brands the same integrated approach that has been effective in bringing the best people and best solutions to clients,” said David Sable, Global CEO. “Joe is a brilliant strategist.  He understands the challenges of bringing complex ideas and products to life and how to build cross-disciplinary teams that help drive results. It’s always about finding the human insight and a people-first approach that creates powerful work.”

Rivas has been serving as Global Client Leader overseeing the Dell teams across Y&R and WPP. He led the development of successful communications platforms and campaigns for Dell including the launch of the global tagline “The Power to Do More” and B2B campaigns such as “Future Ready,” which unified Dell’s B2B marketing efforts under a single platform.

Rivas first joined the organization in 1998 and, among his various roles, managed the strategic planning and insights department for Y&R New York, where he led strategy for clients including Xerox, Accenture, Cellular South and Office Depot.