Most agency leaders love to boast, which is
why it’s so refreshing to interview Yang Yeo, Hakuhodo’s APAC “Creative Kaiju”.
Yeo prefers not to boast: he belongs to a
very humble network that likes to keep a low profile and let its work and
actions speak for themselves.
Of course, there’s a lot Yeo could boast
about if he wanted to. His CV is formidable, having worked at iconic agency BBH
in London before building Fallon in Singapore and Hong Kong. He ran
TBWA\Shanghai, chaired JWT in China and joined Wieden+Kennedy Shanghai – all
before joining Hakuhodo Inc. Tokyo in 2017.
He says he’s looking forward to March, when
he will return to ADFEST – his favourite regional creative festival – as Jury
President of the Outdoor Lotus and Press Lotus categories.
You’ve judged ADFEST before but you’re returning again in 2019. Why do you keep coming back?
Because it's simply Asia's most festive
festival. A wonderful venue to catch up with old friends, and meet new talents.
Also, ADFEST throws some of the best parties, seminars, and the food in
Thailand is just yummilicious. All in all, a great event to feed spirits,
mouths, and minds.
You joined Hakuhodo as APAC Co-Chief Creative Officer in April 2017. How is Hakuhodo performing?
I would say Hakuhodo is a "Gentle
Giant". It's a huge and powerful network, with many talented individuals,
innovative divisions, and creative companies, globally. But yet Hakuhodo
remains very humble and low profile. You don't hear very much about their
clients or new business wins, or boasting about its financial or award
achievements. Aware of the environment, it goes on its own path, in search of
solutions and relevance in the modern times, with a gentle smile, in a calm,
and orderly manner.
Can you describe your partnership with Kentaro Kimura, who is Hakuhodo’s other APAC co-chief creative officer: how do you compliment each other?
Kentaro-san is a global citizen with a
Japanese passport. He is terribly open-minded, madly-energetic,
bloody-fearless, awfully-positive, and a bucket full of silliness, which works
well because I'm equally silly, if not sillier. Besides the fun and laughter, I
compliment his crazy enthusiasm with plans, strategies, and structure, so there
is some science to the madness.
What is your focus for 2019? How are you both helping Hakuhodo to be more progressive outside Japan?
Progression outside Japan is our focus, and
we're still figuring how to do this. (Even if we've figured it out, we wouldn't
share our plans openly here, right?)
You have another title as Hakuhodo’s “Creative Kaiju”, but I think “Kaiju” translates as “large strange beast” or even “monster”. Do you think of yourself as a strange creative beast?
Nothing great ever came out of being
fearful. My role is to transform this gentle giant into a giant that is
tenacious in doing what's right – right for the brands, right for the people,
right for society, above and beyond what clients think that is right.
Who has mentored you along the way – are there any leaders who have shaped your philosophy as a creative leader?
Too many to name here, but working for the
best leaders and companies from around the world definitely helped shaped me.
It certainly confirmed that formulas and methods are for people whom are
pretenders and clueless. The best talents tend to drop what they think they
know and start from scratch, and always ask the simplest of questions: 'Why
would people give a shit about your ideas?' Wieden has a philosophy that I
still use today: 'walk in stupid'.
What campaigns are you proudest of helping to create over the past year or two?
Beyond campaigns, helping the various leadership teams, plotting courses to unchartered business territories, and identifying ways of staying relevant, or even better, lead the future, is what excites me the most. Makes me proud when I see these plans adopted and put into action.