PEOPLE
100 people / 3 continents / 4 studios / 1 mission
Paul Drake and Ben Oates founded JDO over twenty-five years ago. While their principles shaped the agency, it’s the talent, drive, and creativity of the team that define it. As founders, they remain hands-on, working closely with the team every day. This creates a dynamic where collaboration and healthy competition thrive—fostering a culture of mutual respect, where each colleague’s work inspires the next.
The 'O' in JDO
With a product design background and a proven track record with world-leading iconic brands, Ben brings a wealth of expertise and a distinctive global perspective to his work. For him, design goes beyond aesthetics—it's about harnessing creativity to build meaningful connections and solve complex challenges. As a leader, he drives JDO's visionary approach, spearheading bold strategies and nurturing strong client relationships. He is also an active figure in the creative community, speaking at events and judging prestigious design awards.
![](/media/wzkhodsh/ben2.jpg?width=100&quality=10&v=1db3d6ec059d050)
THE D
With 25 years of experience working with leading brands around the world, Paul knows the score. He understands the crucial importance of cutting through the clutter, evoking emotion and leaving a lasting impression. His passion for design drives him to push the boundaries, earning him recognition as a creative leader that delivers exceptional results. When he isn't at the helm of JDO, Paul can be found building custom motorbikes and seeking new inspiration for his next big project.
GLOBAL TEAMS:
GROUP MD FIONA FLORENCE
![](/media/3afgrwmg/ek_flo_2037_240125.jpg?width=100&height=125&quality=10&v=1db7cf01978bd20)
Fiona Florence is Managing Director of award-winning design agency, JDO.
As a marketing expert and champion of creativity, Fiona is responsible for nurturing relationships with both JDO’s international client portfolio and its internal team to drive success through excellence, growth and vision.
With over 25 years’ industry experience, Fiona is a recognised thought leader and has written articles for notable publications such as Marketing Week, The Grocer, Transform and more. In addition to providing insight for brands looking to deepen emotional engagement through design distinctiveness, Fiona is a passionate advocate for sustainability in packaging, diversity in the workplace, and women in creative leadership. With the belief that a happy team is a successful team, she has committed herself to the advancement of workplace wellbeing through initiatives that support professional development and provide high-quality, balanced lives for all employees. Fiona is also the driving force behind JDO RAW, one of the industry’s foremost brand design competitions that recognises and celebrates the next generation of creative talent.
Fiona began her career as a copywriter, but found herself drawn to agency life after working at JWT in Sydney. Equipped with a post-graduate CIM degree in Marketing, she rose through the ranks, working at the UK’s most prestigious design and branding agencies before joining JDO in 2009. During her career, Fiona has worked with an array of world-famous brands for such esteemed companies as Unilever, Pepsico, Pernod Ricard, Beam Suntory, Jack Daniels, Shell, Hennig Olsen and more.
MD LONDON PHILIP STEVENSON
![](/media/5lzc52hb/phil_s_240125.jpg?width=100&height=125&quality=10&v=1db6e3bf0572390)
As an accomplished brand design expert and leader, Philip serves as Managing Director at JDO London, overseeing the overall operations and strategic direction of the agency.
His extensive experience, including several positions within JDO and previous roles with Blue Marlin and Interbrand, reflects his outstanding ability to deliver strategic brand design solutions for established brands and challengers alike.
Under Philip's guidance, JDO London has experienced remarkable growth, boasting an impressive client portfolio that includes notable brands such as Pernod Ricard, Shell, Pepsi, and Dove. He remains tirelessly committed to ensuring the agency's profitability, resource management, and client satisfaction remain at an exceptional level. With a deep understanding of JDO's guiding ethos, "We create belief," Philip is a natural leader and communicator, dedicated to driving JDO London's strategic growth plan forward.
Philip emphasises the importance of agility and ambition in today's brand design landscape, where consumer and client mindsets have shifted the way design agencies engage. He remains dedicated to leading the London team in tackling an ever-widening array of brand design challenges.
VP SHANGHAI GREENLY LU
Greenly serves as the Vice President of Operations of JDO Shanghai.
In this pivotal role, Lu is responsible for laying the foundation of our agency's presence in China and the surrounding markets. Her focus is on building relationships with leading Asian brands and delivering transformative creative solutions.
Greenly, who has over two decades of experience as a design management leader, has an impressive track record of working with both Asian brands and international companies, including Wu Liang Ye, Diageo, Snow Beer, Mondelez, Unilever, and Kraft Heinz. Before joining JDO, Lu served as the Vice President and founding partner of Design Bridge Shanghai.
With Greenly’s extensive experience working with both Asian brands and international companies, along with her entrepreneurial spirit, JDO is confident in its ability to meet the high expectations of clients for creativity through its emotionally intuitive, strong, and aesthetically beautiful brand solutions. Her commitment to bringing the agency's world-class standards to the Chinese and surrounding markets will unlock the vast potential for creating belief in brand owners not only in Asia but beyond as well.
MD NEW YORK LAURA BIRD
![](/media/qklhkh1m/jdo-laura-bird.png?width=100&height=125&quality=10&v=1db3d8cf5909290)
Laura Bird is the Managing Director of JDO NY, leading the agency's North American operations with a focus on growth and expanding its client portfolio.
With over 14 years of experience at top-tier global agencies, she previously served as Head of Business Operations, North America, at Design Bridge, overseeing its integration with Superunion after the WPP acquisition.
Throughout her career, Laura has worked with major brands like Diageo, Reckitt, Suntory, and Mastercard. At JDO, she partners with clients such as Pernod Ricard, Unilever, and Schick US, driving creativity and innovation. Laura is passionate about leading JDO NY into an exciting new chapter, combining strategic vision with entrepreneurial energy.
GLOBAL STRATEGY ED SILK
Ed is a true expert in strategic planning and brand design, bringing extensive experience and a unique perspective to his role as JDO Global Head of Strategy.
With a unique combination of strategic thinking, design expertise, and business acumen, Ed leads an international team of strategists to deliver exceptional results for JDO's world-class clients time and time again.
Before joining JDO, Ed held the position of Head of Strategy at Bulletproof London, where he worked with some of the world's leading brands, including Bayer, P&G, Heineken, and Mondelez. During his tenure, he played a critical role in the creation of White Claw, a hard seltzer brand that achieved remarkable success with a 60% category share by the end of 2019. Prior to Bulletproof, Ed served as a Planning Partner at Coley Porter Bell, where he developed effective strategic plans for clients across a wide range of industries, further honing his skills.
Ed's extensive experience and proven track record make him an invaluable asset to the JDO team. His exceptional strategic planning skills and deep understanding of creative execution ensure that JDO continues to provide exceptional solutions that exceed client expectations and create a strong belief in their brands.
GROUP CD RAY SMITH
![](/media/akeduiuc/ray_240125.jpg?width=100&height=125&quality=10&v=1db6e3bf0541650)
Ray was one of the first creative senior leaders to join JDO in 2006, after 10 years at Design Bridge.
During these first years he met Paul Drake, the JDO founder, and after joining went on to help build us into the hundred strong agency it has become. Through selection and development of designers across the expanding JDO studios, he delivers brands for many categories.
As an experienced lead Creative Director and still with one hand on a pencil, his approach has always been straight forward and collaborative with his clients and uses simple ideals and processes to determine the outcome of any project. He always strives for the simplest route to success. This works equally well for established brands or those that need a new lease of life, as demonstrated on Diageo brand Smithwicks Ale, a case study in JDO history of a remarkable brand turnaround.
He has brought well over 25 years of experience in creating for Jack Daniels, Carlsberg, Dove Men + Care, Dulux, as well as sports branding for Adidas, Champions League & the FA.
Ray has a love for all forms of creativity whether it’s music, art or design and is always at an event or gig, anywhere that artists reshape, redirect and bring character and life.
CD LONDON EMILY FOX
![](/media/v1ehf04u/emily_f_240125.jpg?width=100&height=125&quality=10&v=1db6e3bf04d1170)
Emily Fox is a Creative Director at JDO’s London studio, where she plays a pivotal role in driving the agency’s global vision of ‘Creating Belief.’
With a passion for strategic-led creativity, she specialises in crafting transformative branding solutions across both physical and digital platforms.
Before joining JDO, Emily was a Creative Director at Lewis Moberly, where she led standout projects for brands like Campari's Appleton Rum, Winsor & Newton, and Illy, helping these brands connect deeply with consumers and inspire action. Known for her boundless imagination and collaborative approach, Emily is an exceptional talent who brings a wealth of experience and a knack for delivering meaningful, innovative design.
Driven by a belief in the power of creativity to solve complex challenges, Emily is committed to helping JDO remain an unparalleled creative partner for the world’s most intriguing and influential brands.
ACD NEW YORK BEN RIDLEY
![](/media/nohbmopf/benr.jpg?width=100&height=125&quality=10&v=1db3d9409b877e0)
An acclaimed Associate Creative Director, based out of Manhattan who has helped create some America’s biggest brands, gaining over a decade of experience from some of the best-known design studios.
Collaborating with client teams for companies such as Anheuser Busch InBev, Pernod Ricard, Mars Inc, and Unilever, has worked on creating desirable brands across the consumer-packaged goods industry, including Bud Light, Burger King, Coca Cola, Target, and a plethora of luxury spirits portfolios. His work has gained international recognition in published works such as The Dieline, Creative Review, ADC Awards (Art Directors Club) and such, has been a juror on multiple awards panels including this year’s Pac Awards Global 2022 & 2023.
Regularly speaking at industry events, including The Luxe Pack Expo at New York’s Javits Center and to design students at the Fashion Institute of Technology (FIT) Ben shares the importance of brand storytelling and ways of creating innovative design solutions to connect with your consumer in ways that matter.
Now the principal creative for JDO’s New York studio, an agency with a legacy of building brands and packaging for over 20 years, Ben’s focus of growing and leading an expert team of creatives to service JDOs fantastic American clients. Together they aim to use strategic positioning, brand storytelling and bold design to create continued belief in our most beloved products. The message that they live and breathe is “WE CREATE BELIEF!” As well as build an industry leading creative space to empower young designers.
![](/media/3afgrwmg/ek_flo_2037_240125.jpg?width=100&height=125&quality=10&v=1db7cf01978bd20)
![](/media/5lzc52hb/phil_s_240125.jpg?width=100&height=125&quality=10&v=1db6e3bf0572390)
![](/media/qklhkh1m/jdo-laura-bird.png?width=100&height=125&quality=10&v=1db3d8cf5909290)
![](/media/akeduiuc/ray_240125.jpg?width=100&height=125&quality=10&v=1db6e3bf0541650)
![](/media/v1ehf04u/emily_f_240125.jpg?width=100&height=125&quality=10&v=1db6e3bf04d1170)
![](/media/nohbmopf/benr.jpg?width=100&height=125&quality=10&v=1db3d9409b877e0)