Leigh Clapham
Non Executive Independent Chairman at eftpos Payments Australia
Richard is the equivalent of a forensic scientist when it comes to all aspects of brand strategy. Nothing escapes Richard’s attention, from planning the process, researching the facts, understanding the competition, considering the options and presenting recommendations with thought provoking insights. I believe brand marketeers can gain an unfair advantage over their competitors when they work alongside Richard. I say “work alongside” because Richard is a team player, unlike some consultants that can disappear down a rabbit hole and suddenly re-emerge with the answer, Richard works with his clients every step of the way through a thorough, proven process that leaves no stone unturned to deliver the right strategy for the right brand. How do I know all this? I’ve been watching (and benefiting) from Richard doing this for over 20 years, as an agency colleague and as a client (twice). Say no more.
My working association with Richard spans some 20 years both whilst he was working with major global agencies and more recently in his capacity within Brandview. My first association with Richard was when we were reviewing the Johnson brand and the conversation broadened to the difference between a brand and a corporate equity. Richard was entrusted with mining and defining the Johnson’s brand and the Johnson & Johnson corporate equity to help us understand the difference, the similarities and dependency of our brand and our corporate equity. What started as a local project captured the attention and imagination of the global group and became the foundation of defining where the corporation stood and what it stands for and the brand and what it offers and where the boundaries and synergies lie. Richard has a unique talent for making the complex simple, relating to all stakeholders and keeping it honest and true. With a rich history of over a hundred years , and a well tested and understood value system the company needed to continue to evolve and be dynamic in a vastly changed landscape. Richards brand work was invaluable in understanding and enriching the J&J values and equities and keeping them as relevant today as in our history. Richard is great to work with, quickly establishes relationships and is single minded in keeping the conversation honest and on track. He provides unique and insightful views by distilling many different stakeholders contributions and keeps the team outcome focused. He has breadth and flexibility to work on the big stuff or quickly nail the smaller stuff but be prepared to hear what you didn’t know or didn’t want to know!!!
Max Johnston
President and CEO Johnson & Johnson Asia Pacific
Michelle Pilot
Head of Marketing Australasia 2004-2016
I’ve worked with Richard extensively for over 12 years in the Australian business as head of marketing Australasia.
He is a highly valuable strategist specialising in Purpose definition and leveraging this into commercially-driven marketing strategies and stories across channels.
Richard also works strongly in leading the development of “Go-To-Market” strategies involving cross functional stakeholders.
His style is structured yet flexible and he works well with groups to deliver robust outputs. He has the ability to simplify and communicate “marketing-speak” to non-marketing stakeholders, thus taking them seamlessly on the strategic journey.
Richard has also worked with Mastercard in APMEA across brand strategy, marketing strategy, creative development and has designed an integrated communications brief system for agency partners.
He has been and continues to be an invaluable asset for Mastercard and is an absolute pleasure to work with.
We commissioned Brandview to do a major review of our Zip branding.
This was a comprehensive piece of work including both internal and external stakeholders. Richard Lee did a fabulous job at leading this work. The level of strategic thought and insight was truly outstanding.
The conclusions drawn and the resulting brand direction is extremely powerful. Equally important was the highly engaging way in which the work was done.
Brandview are simply a delight to work with and I highly recommend them to any potential client.
John Doumani
Chief Executive Officer
Rowena Millward
Managing Partner at MORGAN
Richard is truly a world class strategic planner. He combines that rare ability to really listen, capture the true essence of a challenge or opportunity, and then solve it through powerful positionings & stories, with a simplicity and clarity which instantly resonates and is remembered.
Unlike others, Richard is also not limited to specific channels – he is one of the few who can generate and translate strategy across any media which matters – from social, to video to retail, with relevant context.
Also he is a fabulous person to work with – considerate, genuinely committed to doing the best for his clients business, collaborative but always with a clear point of view. And you will know all this is true within 60 seconds of meeting him!