With more than 20 years as CEOs and almost 30 years at the agency, Jens Krog and Claus Wittenborg will step aside to make way for a new management team.

New management at Advance as the next generation steps up

With more than 20 years as CEOs and almost 30 years at the agency, Jens Krog and Claus Wittenborg will step aside to make way for a new management team. Although it's rather unusual to operate with two CEOs, this model will continue when Ann-Louise Rosen and Camilla Grove Pelle take over the roles from the 1^st of January 2022. 

Claus Wittenborg says of the change, "It has been a huge privilege to lead such a high-quality and value-based agency as Advance. We see enormous, continued potential for what is perhaps Denmark's most international agency, and so we have chosen to step aside so that new talent can make its mark and release that potential". 

Jens Krog adds, "We have been busy overseeing a smooth transition while ensuring that we do not stay in the post too long. Of course, it is always difficult to determine when the right time is, but the agency is now back at full speed after a hard corona year, so it feels like the moment to pass the baton on to Ann-Louise and Camilla, as well as the rest of the management team and partner group".

"By stepping down now, we also get the opportunity to cultivate board work, which is a great passion for both of us. So, it is by no means a retirement", the two outgoing CEOs emphasize.

Claus Wittenborg continues, "We are very proud that over the years, Advance has grown in strength – going from a niche agency to one with a strong international customer portfolio and lots of international colleagues – all while maintaining the collaboration with LEGO, that established the formation of Advance more than 40 years ago".

Jens Krog adds, "It is not only long-term customer relationships that characterise us, but also long-term employee relationships, with many having been here for a significant number of years. We ourselves are proof of this and so perhaps the two things are probably related. We have been busy creating an agency where we would want to work ourselves, and when we can also boast of maintaining a positive bottom line despite difficult market conditions, we feel that the business model has proven its worth".

The two new CEOs are of course looking forward to the new role.

Ann-Louise and Camilla both joined Advance in 2017 and were welcomed into the circle of partners in 2019. Thus, they have both been important drivers in the development that Advance has undergone in recent years. They have a good understanding of the business and the culture.

The new leaders complement each other well. Ann-Louise has a brand strategy background and has previously been with Kunde & Co, Danske Bank, and Ogilvy, while Camilla joined Advance from the digital agency, Vertic, where she had been working from 2003 as well as being a partner at the agency for several years. Both believe in the importance of making time to nurture client relationships and therefore it was also natural for them to continue to drive this priority as CEOs.

On stepping into the new role, Ann-Louise Rosen says, "When I joined almost four years ago, I chose Advance for the international potential I saw and the strong culture it has, and so I am very much looking forward to developing it further. We have a super strong foundation for delivering communication solutions internationally and we must unleash the great potential we have even further".

Her new CEO partner, Camilla Grove Pelle, adds, "I look forward to both the collaboration with Ann-Louise, the rest of the management team, and our talented employees. I am proud to see how much we have strengthened our digital offering at Advance in recent years – both with existing customers and the many new customers we have gained. We feel that we are a particularly good match for large Danish businesses operating internationally".

The two new directors are in the process of recruiting new employees for the future journey, one of whom being new COO, Lone Poulsen. Lone joined the management team in September with responsibility for Operations and as the leader of the agency's extensive project management team.