Diamond marketing group has promoted COO Alan Macdonald to the newly created role of chief AI officer, tasked with guiding the agency's use of AI in its everyday work.
Macdonald has 25 years of industry experience, marked by previous roles at Aeroplan, Naked Creative Consultancy, FCB, and Leo Burnett. He has been with Diamond since 2017, and will maintain his position as COO in addition to his new AI-focused role.
Macdonald has 25 years of industry experience, marked by previous roles at Aeroplan, Naked Creative Consultancy, FCB, and Leo Burnett. He has been with Diamond since 2017, and will maintain his position as COO in addition to his new AI-focused role.
While tasked with training Diamond staff and clients on AI, Macdonald is also committed to improving the industry’s knowledge of the technology in general.
He was recently selected and trained by the international organization VJAL Institute as an AI trainer, and has signed the organization's pledge to train one million future AI leaders. He plans to conduct a minimum of 25 workshops in the next 12 months to bring AI insights to the industry.
In a media release, crafted with AI support, (as was the accompanying main photo) Macdonald said there are several under-utilized aspects of AI that can drive agency performance, from leveraging data to uncovering insights, to analyzing trends, and harnessing information that can inform decision-making and predict or shape future business outcomes. “This approach is revolutionizing how we develop marketing strategies and optimize campaigns," he (and AI) said.
Macdonald also holds an MBA in AI from the University of Cumbria, and is pursuing an MSc in information management and digital transformation from the University of Salford. He also holds a certificate in the implications of artificial intelligence for business strategy from MIT’s Computer Science and Artificial Intelligence Laboratory (CSAIL).
“[Macdonald’s expanded mandate] is about to uproot how we all currently think about going to market,” said Diamond president Josh Diamond. “This leadership role will help usher in a new era, not only for Diamond and our clients, but the broader industry as well.”
