Three Questions for... Daniel O'Bey

Three Questions for... Daniel O'Bey, Joint Creative Head, JOY

1. What are you most excited about that’s happening in the industry today?

I'm excited about the things I've always been excited about - creative ideas that endure. Is it exciting that we are now applying these to new media - like programmatic video, chatbots and artificial intelligence? Yes! The fundamentals remain unchanged. That's exciting. The playground has got vastly bigger with some weird and wonderful equipment in it. That's exciting too.

2. And if you could change one thing about the industry, what would it be?

There are too many judges and not enough guides. There's too much pointless negativity and not enough constructive feedback and genuine desire to improve. Instead of a new expensive award show full of judges, I'd like to set up a free mentoring system full of guides which helps make work better.

3. What is your favourite ad of all time and why?

My favourite ad of all time is the first one I ever remember seeing. It must have been powerful, because it has endured. It was for KP mixed nuts. The idea was very simple. Maggie Thatcher's and Neil Kinnock's nuts (heads) cut into strips and mixed up. I love it - because it's anarchic, simple and funny.