Big Spaceship Hires Cedric Devitt as Its First CCO

After a banner year of growth under the leadership of Founder and CEO Michael Lebowitz and Managing Director Rob Thorsen, Brooklyn-based digital creative agency Big Spaceship has announced the appointment of Cedric Devitt to the new role of Chief Creative Officer, effective March 9. In 2014, the agency increased revenue by over 20%, created its first international presence in Seoul, South Korea, and brought on new clients including Samsung Mobile, Nestle Purina, Google Play and Organic Valley among numerous others. In response to the most diverse and exciting range of client briefs to-date, Devitt’s role will grow and sharpen work across all three of the agency’s core practices, including marcom, product and social, leading creativity for the agency at large. Devitt will report directly to Lebowitz.

“Since we opened our doors in 2000, creativity has always been and will always be the responsibility of every member of our crew, regardless of their role. That’s the primary reason for our success and longevity,” said Lebowitz. “Our clients are asking us to take on a more central role in their overall efforts. Cedric’s experience across traditional, digital and social is critical to meeting the expanded challenges and leadership role being asked of us, while maintaining our philosophy and culture.”

Prior to Big Spaceship, Devitt served as Chief Creative Officer of MRY and was responsible for the creative output of the agency across North America, Europe and Asia. Before LBi acquired MRY in 2013, Devitt spent over three years at LBi in creative leadership roles, including Chief Creative Officer and Executive Creative Director. He also spent time at TribalDDB Worldwide and Grey. His work on Coca-Cola Olympics, Sony Xperia, AT&T It Can Wait, Americans Elect, and Adobe has been recognized with numerous industry accolades from The One Show, Clios, Webbys, LIAA, Lovie Awards and the 2012 SXSW People’s Choice Award.

“Cedric’s diverse experience mirrors our evolution here at Big Spaceship over the past 15 years. We’ve got a unique structure that allows us to evolve and stay flexible, which is not an easy fit for everyone. But Cedric fundamentally understands our approach and our culture, which is why he’s an ideal fit to lead creative problem solving for our clients and to rally our entire crew together around each and every challenge,” added Thorsen.

Notable creative accomplishments include global platforms for Coca-Cola London Olympics “Move to the Beat” and Coca-Cola Placelists – a location based global social music platform with Spotify. He has also developed branded content and social campaigns for Sony Xperia, Adobe, and Listerine among others. This past year he led the AT&T It Can Wait campaign to help prevent teens from texting and driving. Previously, he helped create the first online presidential primary with Americans Elect, and is also an award-winning film-maker with the feature length documentary Air Guitar Nation.

“Michael and Big Spaceship have always represented the idea of what a great, nimble digital agency should be,” Devitt said. “I’ve watched and admired their work for years, and truly believe that their culture is the perfect complement to what is possible for brands in a digital and social world.”