R/GA Names Ex-Google Leader Sadie Thoma as First Global Chief Business Officer
R/GA has appointed Sadie Thoma, a near-15-year Google leader, as its first-ever global chief business officer — a new role created to package and scale the newly independent agency's AI-and-creativity capabilities into commercial, performance-linked growth.
A new commercial role for a new-look R/GA
On 16 September, R/GA named Sadie Thoma as its first-ever global chief business officer, reporting directly to global CEO Robin Forbes. The role is newly created, and its brief is explicit: convert R/GA's post-independence momentum into commercial growth.
Thoma joins from Google, where she spent nearly 15 years across sales, business development and marketing, most recently as director of US ads marketing leading Fortune 500 brand partnerships. There, she spearheaded AI go-to-market work including the Creative AI Lighthouse Program and CMO AI Labs.
Why the hire matters
R/GA is selling a specific promise: that creativity and technology have merged. Thoma will help commercialise BRDNA Sequencer, R/GA's proprietary system that turns brand guidelines into machine-readable components so AI agents can generate on-brand assets at scale. That is a product story as much as a services one.
Hiring from Google — rather than a rival network — is a deliberate signal. It says R/GA wants platform-grade go-to-market discipline and AI fluency, not just agency craft. As Thoma put it, "creativity and technology are no longer separate disciplines; they've converged to unleash transformative brand and business growth."
Marketing Minute's read: agencies are becoming product companies
The most important phrase in this announcement is "value-linked and performance-based partnership models." R/GA is signalling a shift away from selling time and toward selling outcomes and licensed AI tools. That is the direction of travel for creative agencies trying to defend margins as generative AI compresses production costs.
Expect more agencies to hire commercial leaders from tech platforms, and to productise proprietary AI. The competitive line is no longer "we make great work" but "we make great work faster, on-brand, at scale — and we'll tie our fee to your results."
What businesses should do now
If R/GA is a partner or a contender, ask to see BRDNA Sequencer in action and press on what "performance-based" actually means for your contract — which metrics, what upside, what risk-sharing. Treat proprietary AI systems as assets to evaluate, not buzzwords to nod along to.
More broadly, use this as a prompt to audit your own agency roster. The agencies worth keeping in an AI era are the ones that can prove speed, brand consistency and measurable outcomes — and are willing to be paid on that basis.
Quick FAQ
Who is Sadie Thoma?
A near-15-year Google leader, most recently director of US ads marketing, now R/GA's first global chief business officer, reporting to global CEO Robin Forbes.
What is BRDNA Sequencer?
R/GA's proprietary AI system that converts brand guidelines into machine-readable components, letting AI agents produce on-brand creative at scale.
Why does this appointment matter?
It signals agencies moving toward productised AI and performance-linked pricing — selling outcomes and tools, not just hours.
The headline is a hire, but the real story is a business-model shift. R/GA is signalling a move from selling hours to selling outcomes and licensed AI tools. If a creative agency pitches you "performance-based" partnership, pin down the metrics and the risk-sharing — that's where the value, or the vagueness, really lives. — Daniel Nikolla, Founder of Merx Marketing
Agencies are becoming product companies — evaluate proprietary AI tools like assets, and hold "performance-based" pricing to specific metrics and shared risk.
Would you tie an agency's fee to your business results? Tell us how you think creative agencies should be paid in the AI era.
If you would like to know more about this topic, please contact us on danieln@merxmarketing.co.uk
Sources: Branding in Asia, Roastbrief, Mi3, Campaign US.
Related reading
Written by Daniel Nikolla, Founder of Merx Marketing Ltd and Marketing Minute
Comments