R/GA’s expansion into Indonesia- interview with Laurent, Executive Technology Director
The global innovation company R/GA frequently works with large, similarly innovative clients. Since 2019, the company has been seeking to implement a new office to focus on primarily tech expertise and services. Since Southeast Asia boasts a large pool of talent, R/GA decided to form its tech team in the heart of it- Nongsa Digital Park.
R/GA designs businesses and brands for a more human future. It capitalises on visual and verbal design, modern marketing, customer experience, and a myriad of digital services. It is a creative agency that creates products, services and advertising campaigns for its clients.
They are makers who understandthe power of design and technology and how it influences human behaviours. R/GA has the combined creativity and innovation of agencies with the commercial expertise and strategic rigour of management consultants.
The result is an offering built to help clients innovate and deliver experiences to capture opportunities for growth. Their work spans
innovation consulting, brand strategy and design, product and service
design, and marketing communications.
After deciding that they wanted to expand into Indonesia, R/GA wanted to work with a recruiting partner that also had strong foundations in the region. Glints’ expertise in Indonesia and deep knowledge of the local hiring scene made it an obvious choice for the company.
However, the innovative digital media agency also sought native engineers with a creative side. They also wanted hires that posses tech talent with the ability to work on start-ups. This was “extremely difficult”, according to Laurent Thevenet.
“This team is now extremely critical and pivotal to R/GA’s growth in APAC.”
With the client’s objectives in mind, Glints sourced for the right candidates to build R/GA’s new tech team. The process was ‘transparent, open and friendly,” and both parties “understood each other very well.”
Glints ensured that R/GA only received CVs from talent that were in line with the company values and standards. Boasting a turnaround time of 2 weeks to receive a profile, R/GA was able to quickly find suitable candidates and base them in Nongsa Digital Park. Of the 13 hires, half work in the Digital Park, with the other half based remotely in Jakarta.
R/GA’s newly formed tech team not only assists the Singapore region of the company, but also the entire APAC region. With this team situated in Nongsa, R/GA was able to take on more tech-focused projects for clients in APAC. In particular, those to do with mobile apps, maintenance on certain ongoing projects, and website development were better addressed. These projects also often have very specific requirements.
“Our experience with Glints has been great. In all situations, Glints has proven to be very flexible and adaptable, even given the pandemic that occurred this year. Recruiting with them is more efficient than ever.”
