After a decade away, former Fuel president Chris Greenfield is returning to head up the agency.
Greenfield, who left Fuel in 2005, is tasked with leading the Ottawa-based shop as it expands its digital delivery of gamification, customer rewards and loyalty-building experiences for global brands.
“I’ve always been what I call their biggest fan.” Greenfield told Marketing. “Ever since I left I always kind of kept an eye on it and stayed in touch with the guys. Every year it keeps getting better and better, and it’s just a great opportunity to lead the top production studio in North America in the advertising space.”
Greenfield most recently served as president of the Canadian division of global research firm IpsosASI, and spent two years running the innovation department at Canadian Tire. Prior to that, he headed up digital agency Downtown Partners, and was managing director at Tribal DDB.
His return comes after a steady surge in new business wins for Fuel. In addition to long-standing clients such as Microsoft, Mattel and McDonalds, Fuel has recently added NASCAR, DreamWorks, Hasbro and the NFL to its global client roster. The agency (which also operates out of Los Angeles) has a partnership with Google, revolving around development work for Chrome.
In January, Fuel launched PlayGround Division, an internal lab dedicated to exploring emerging technology such as 3D printing and robotics. Greenfield, who referred to Fuel as an “advanced technology and creative production studio,” said the shop’s slew of recent wins came as a result of its dedication to innovation.
“That’s why a lot of clients come to us because we do have an eye on the future and where technology’s going,” he said. “Not only do we have an eye on it, we actually have our hands on it, and we’re creating some of our own.”
