Goafest 2009: Look who’s talking: Jean-Marie Dru

Take Jean-Marie Dru’s name and the word Disruption comes to mind. Dru, chairman of TBWA Worldwide, has popularised and pioneered the concept of Disruption worldwide and has authored books on the same subject including Disruption: Overturning Conventions and Shaking up the Marketplace and Beyond Disruption: Changing the Rules in the Marketplace.

The concept refers to the “art of asking better questions, challenging conventional wisdom and overturning assumptions and prejudices that get in the way of imagining new possibilities and visionary ideas.”

TBWA has conducted various Disruption Day workshops for their clients around the world “to identify new opportunities, to redefine how these companies operate, what they offer and how they communicate”.

Dru became the chairman of TBWA Worldwide in 2007.He was appointed president and chief executive officer of TBWA Worldwide in 2001. Before this, he was president international of TBWA Worldwide.

He started his career in 1971 with Dupuy Compton (now called Saatchi & Saatchi) as an account manager on P&G. He soon moved to the role of executive creative director. He then joined Young & Rubicam. After this, he set up the BDDP (Boulet Dru Dupuy Petit) Group in 1984 along with three other partners.

In context of India, JMD had expressed his optimism for the Indian market in an exclusive interview with Campaign India during Cannes 2008. Read and listen to the audio interview here:

http://www.campaignindia.in/news/cannes_2008_listen_to_tbwa_s_jean_marie_dru