RUMPUS IN STB-MCCANN GROUP, AFFECTS AAAN 2012 AGM/CONGRESS

The group comprises of STB-McCann Advertising, a full service creative agency with Mr. Rufai Ladipo as the Managing Director and Universal McCann, a media specialist agency led by Mr. Lanre Fasheun as Managing Director amongst other companies.

According to Brandcrunch investigations, the two frontline agencies which had been the cash-cows of the group have become a drain pipe in recent time losing most of their clients and businesses.

The worst hit is the advertising agency. The business had suffered series of losses since the retirement of Sir Omojafor from the day-to-day management of the company as the MD/CEO  and the appointment of the current managing Director. The agency lost its best paying clients – Coca-Cola, Unilever, Nestle and Swift network among others. Peugeot Automobile Nigeria (PAN) is spending next to nothing if anything at all and no new businesses is coming in.

According to industry watchers, the agency in recent times has been reduced to a civil service structure.  In its wake it’s lost a number of proficient hands just as the businesses were heading out. Such include Steve Olaoye, Former Deputy Managing Director/Creative Director. Steve now runs his own agency.

To make matters worse for the agency, the Managing Director, an employee/ manager found the time to contest and emerged the president of the Association of Advertising Agencies of Nigeria (AAAN). Although, Rufai claims he had the backing of the group and especially the Chairman to run for the office of the AAAN president, it has not in any way better the lot of the agency but instead the situation gets worse by the day.

With the current status of the business in the agency, findings reveal that the management had no choice but to call for a restructuring. According to investigation, the first casualty of the planned restructuring/re-organisation is the Managing Director who incidentally is the President of the AAAN.

This development was further confirmed at the AAAN 2012 AGM/Congress press briefing which held at the AAAN secretariat in Ikeja.  Traditionally, the first AGM by any sitting exco is usually a formal occasion to endorse the exco for a second year in office. It is usually a non election AGM.  But while addressing the media, Rufai informed that due to some personal reasons he will not be seeking a second year in office. This infers the 2012 AGM/Congress which commence on 28th June – 30th June will be an election AGM.

The reason for Rufai’s backing out is not farfetched although he would not disclose at the press conference. “He can no longer sit in the office as AAAN president because he has been relieved of his position from the agency which offered him the platform to get into the position of the No. 1 adman in the industry”, revealed a source.

There comes the issue of a paid employee /manager being the president of the association. This was viewed as a critical issue in M2 Magazine’s editorials and its popular Shopfloor column when Rufai was routing to become the president contesting against owners/managers like Erhabor Emokpae, Executive Vice Chairman, Lowe Lintas and Longley Evru, MD/CEO, Angels Communications.  The last two were final authorities in their respective agencies while the out-going president is not. Thank God, he is allowed to luxury of completing his first term or else if the final authority in his place of employment so desires, he would have long abandoned the ship, says another source who claimed he voted against Rufai at the Ijebu Ode AGM/Congress.So the way is open for another election.

The current development is however instructive to members of the association to shun sentiments in getting candidates into the No. 1 position especially. Rufai had contested against Lolu Akinwunmi  in Abuja but failed to realize his ambition and did the same in Ijebu-Ode.  He became victorious at the 2011 elections no thanks to sentiments aimed at compensating him.

Suffice to say that with Rufai’s election, STB- Maccan became the first agency in the Nigerian advertising industry to produce two presidents. Sir Steve Omojafor, Chairman, STB-McCann is a former president of the association. Also Rufai made record as the first non owner Manager elected president of the association.

Also affected in the raging brouhaha in the STB-McCann Advertising group is Universal McCann, the media independent arm of the business where its Managing Director was asked to step down.

All the while, the company which has been under the leadership of Lanre Fasheun, MD,  assisted by Biodun Fagbohun, as Deputy Managing Director for over one and a half decades has been doing quite well. Although, Biodun left the company a couple of years back but the company has been doing consistently well until recently when a series of losses left the agency’s clients base almost empty.

It lost Coca-Cola and Cadbury, two traditional accounts that were its mainstay from inception. There were also other fringe businesses that were lost to competition.  However, it recently won the Chi Group media business in what industry watchers see as the beginning of its comeback bid.  This shows the media agency’s situation is not as precarious as the creative agency’s, but the owners of the business decided to take a frontal and decisive approach to address the two situations. Hence, the sack.

According to investigations, the restructuring became necessary as the McCann global agency affiliation arrangement is at stake.

Meanwhile, as the STB-McCann debacle would definitely alter the mode and style of the 2012 AGM/Congress, it will be for the positive. The body will have come to the full realization that their presidential candidates must be the final decision maker in his agency, and moreso, sentiments must be thrown to the dogs.

As the AGM comes up, the question is who takes over the gauntlet? Is anyone ready to take over and continue the Rufai’s agenda most of which are still at their embryonic stages?  Are Erhabor Emokpae and Longley Evru services still available for the association? Everyone will remember that Rufai stopped the duo even after what was thought to be more visionary and thoughtful programmes of action by Emokpae during the 2011 campaign/manifesto night.  Let’s keep our fingers crossed and watch this space