Van der Zant joins from Cherry London where she was head of new business. At Cherry, she developed partnership-led CRM, acquisition and loyalty programmes, helping to launch O2 Priority. Prior to that she was client partner at Rainmaker.
In her new role, she will be responsible for leading client strategy and overseeing Ingenuity’s 30-strong account team alongside business director Dominic Glenn. Both report to Ingenuity CEO and co-founder Chris Kemp and co-founder, chairman and creative director, Shaun Varga.
Alongside cutting-edge new business services, Ingenuity houses an expert events team which runs brand/agency intermediary days as well as bespoke events. It also joins forces with sister PR agency Acuity, which offers services including sector-specific media targeting for clients.
Van der Zant (pictured) said: “I’ve always admired Ingenuity’s ability to spot opportunities for the company and its clients. It’s aptly named as it develops new ways of making connections for brands and agencies, helping their businesses to grow.
“Getting back into a thriving, bustling sales environment had huge appeal, alongside the chance to work with some great people. I’ve been blown away by the warm welcome since I joined.”
Chris Kemp, co-founder and CEO of Ingenuity, added: “It’s great to have Claire on board. She has a wealth of experience with agencies and brands and we believe she’ll help our business achieve strong growth in 2016.
I look forward to working with her to bolster the team and our processes to get the best out of our new business drive for clients.”