Our Take
Social fluency is finally translating into senior creative roles, but the work still depends more on execution craft than platform knowledge.
Why it matters
Creative departments need cultural relevance as brands chase younger audiences across fragmented media channels. These hires signal agencies are prioritizing social instincts over traditional advertising backgrounds.
Do this week
Creative directors: Audit your team's social media consumption habits this week so you can identify blind spots in cultural awareness before Q1 planning.
Social natives land senior creative roles at major agencies
Adweek's 2026 Creative 100 list shows TikTok-fluent creatives now hold creative director and ACD positions at Ogilvy, McCann, 72andSunny, and other major agencies. These practitioners built careers understanding viral mechanics and cultural trends.
The work spans traditional and digital channels. Frans Ahlberg and Aron Ramstedt at Ogilvy created CeraVe's Michael Cera Super Bowl campaign and turned Nike's controversial Air Force 1 release into a Dove Men soap stunt. Talia Rapp and Jess Bass at McCann developed Huggies' "Expensive Sh*t" campaign featuring babies sitting on $500,000 worth of items.
Several creatives maintain personal brands alongside agency work. Greer Hiltabidle built a TikTok cooking show that became Butter Girl, a Kickstarter-funded flavored butter line, while rising to social director at 72andSunny. Maryah Greene leveraged her "Plant Doctor" influencer status before joining Droga5 as senior influencer manager.
Cultural speed matters more than channel expertise
These hires reflect agencies' need for cultural fluency as brands chase engagement across fragmented platforms. The featured work succeeds through cultural timing rather than technical platform knowledge.
Charlotte Frank and Elizabeth Swartz turned Nathan's Famous into a New York subway system collaboration with "Follow the (F)rank Line," using mustard graphics to direct riders to Coney Island. Joey Johnson and Shelby Tamura created Reodorant, a satirical workout-scented product that spread organically.
The pattern shows agencies value practitioners who understand what resonates culturally, then apply that insight across channels from TikTok to television.
Social instincts still require execution craft
The successful campaigns combine cultural awareness with traditional creative discipline. Alex Naghavi at Block founded AI platform Seamless Studio while maintaining focus on craft and emotion in AI-assisted work. She won Google's AI artist incubator Flow Sessions and Runway's Gen:48 film festival People's Choice Award.
Creative partnerships remain important. Multiple teams on the list work as duos, combining different backgrounds and skills. Ahlberg and Ramstedt both started in restaurants before advertising. Kevin David and Levis Novaes spent over a decade building cultural connections in Brazil.
The work that breaks through requires both social fluency and production capability. Mary Adam's "Blood Appetit" campaign for Chicago's Field Museum partnered with Michelin-rated restaurants to create blood-based dishes, winning Grand Effie awards. Cultural insight alone doesn't execute complex activations.