Principal Financial Group has named Dentsu Creative its creative agency of record.

The appointment comes after a four-month review that saw 10 agencies pitch, including incumbent TBWA\Chiat\Day Los Angeles. The review was managed by Ark Advisors. 

Media planning and buying duties, managed by OMD Prometheus, were not included in the scope of this review. 

Dentsu Creative was chosen for its comprehensive creative and digital capabilities and because it was a strong cultural fit, demonstrating that the agency understood how to reach all of Principal’s stakeholders, according to Beth Wood, EVP and chief marketing officer of Principal Financial Group.

“It's a very complex business and trying to simplify something that’s already challenging is what creative expression is all about,” Wood said. “Having an opportunity to work with an agency that really understands the complexity and can break it down and create that brand value [for employers] and that experience value [for employees] at the same time really was the biggest opportunity we saw with Dentsu.”

Working out of its Chicago office, the agency will handle creative marketing across Principal’s asset management, benefits and protection, and retirement and income solutions business. The first projects are expected to launch in the spring of 2024 and focus on Principal’s workplace retirement and group benefits business. 

Principal wants Dentsu Creative to bring “a fresh set of eyes, a more modern approach” to marketing workplace benefits, particularly amid churn in the market due to layoffs and reorganizations. 

“The macroeconomic environment that’s all around us is really volatile, and you need an expert to help you individually and as a business leader understand how you attract and retain talent for your business and how you ensure that that talent feels valued,” Wood said. 

After a year of making digital a larger part of its media plan, Principal plans on putting a larger focus on traditional TV, news and sports in 2024, particularly as a primary sponsor of NCAA basketball Champ Week in March. 

TBWA\Chiat\Day Los Angeles had held the account since 2008. The agency declined to comment. 

“We have been with [Chiat] for 15 years, before I arrived at Principal four years ago, and it was a very productive partnership that persisted,” Wood said. “I have nothing but glowing recommendations about Chiat; they’ve done great things for Principal as we’ve evolved over the last 15 years.”