Grey has announced the appointment of Masahiko Okazaki as Chief Business Officer and Kazuya Nakajima as Senior Creative Director, of Grey Tokyo. Okazaki joins from TBWA Hakuhodo where he was most recently the Head of Planning and Consulting. At Grey Tokyo, he will work with President & CEO Grey Tokyo, Yukiko Ochiai, and will be responsible for identifying business and growth opportunities for clients as well as for the agency.
A 24-year veteran of the industry, Okazaki began his career at Hakuhodo working on Nissan’s domestic account, later joining TBWA to oversee their global business. During his time at TBWA, he worked with clients such as McDonalds, APPLE, Adidas and AIG. In 2019, Okazaki joined R/GA Tokyo, where he deepened his knowledge as a business strategist before moving to TBWA Hakuhodo.
“Almost 60 years ago, Grey Group was one of the first foreign advertising agencies to enter Japan, and they disrupted and inspired the industry,” said Okazaki.
“With this long and prestigious history I am pleased to join the team to take Grey Tokyo to the next level. I want to transform and achieve Famously Effective for the 21st century by doing what is ‘good’ for the people, culture, society and business.”
Yukiko Ochiai, President & CEO, added: “I am thrilled to welcome Masa as our Chief Business Officer. He has consistently demonstrated the effectiveness of blending creativity, technology, and consulting services across various businesses. I look forward to partnering with Masa to accelerate the evolution of Grey Tokyo.”
Kazuya Nakajima joins as Senior Creative Director
Nakajima joins from DRILL (a joint venture creative boutique of Dentsu and ADK) where he was the Creative Director/Copy Writer and was managing the creative output for clients such as Lenovo, Meiji, Suntory, Nissin. At Grey he will be responsible for strengthening and growing the creative capabilities across the agency and will report to Masanori Tagaya, CCO Grey Tokyo.
With over 20+ years of experience, Nakajima, began his creative career in 2000 at ADK where he spent 14 years working with brands such as Shiseido, Toshiba and Takeda Pharmaceutical, before moving to DRILL in 2014.
Nakajima has won more than 100 advertising awards in Japan and globally, including Creator of the Year Medalist, ADFEST Grand Prix, Cannes Lions, Spikes Asia, Clio Prize, and the ACC Silver Prize. He has also been a member of the jury for Cannes Lions, ADFEST, New York Festival, and the ACC Tokyo Creative Awards.
“I am convinced that with Kazuya joining us, we will be able to enhance each other’s creativity, expand opportunities, and be able to realize unprecedented creative output for clients,” said Masanori Tagaya CCO Grey Tokyo.
“Personally, I’m excited that both of us, who have been in the same industry with different agencies, can now join forces to become a formidable team!”
Nakajima added: “I am honored to be able to participate in Grey’s history and to become part of the Grey network. The current global environment is of change and uncertainty, I think people and brands are seeking hope and purpose – now more than ever. To live up to the expectations and to even exceed them, I want to leverage my skills and creativity for this very purpose. I intend to contribute my best to this very talented team that I am joining.”
