Press Release

360i Launches Agency Education Center to Connect Creative, Design & Technology

VCU Brandcenter's Mark Avnet Joins Digital Agency as Dean of 360iU

Digital agency 360i, selected to Advertising Age's Agency A-List and Fast Company's "World's Most Innovative Companies" roster, announced today the formal launch of its education center 360iU.

360iU is the agency's educational hub, created to cross-pollinate the agency's deep and diverse knowledge base, and is part of a larger, ongoing effort to educate its Fortune 500 clients, employees and the industry at-large on the new world of marketing and communications in which technological innovation is paramount. 360i publishes dozens of reports and whitepapers each year on the digital landscape, and wrote the Social and Mobile Marketing Playbooks as comprehensive guides to the burgeoning emerging media landscape. 360iU is a formal extension of these and other efforts, designed to expand the agency's capacity to spark new ideas that better connect people and brands.

"Education is in our agency's DNA," said Bryan Wiener, CEO of 360i. "Between our clients, the industry and our people, we have educated thousands -- but we always push ourselves to do more, as education is the best path towards innovation in a space marked by such rapid change. And who better to lead our education efforts than an accomplished professor from the top advertising grad school in the country?"

The agency has recruited Mark Avnet as Dean of 360iU. Avnet joins 360i from the Virginia Commonwealth University (VCU) Brandcenter, widely heralded as the nation's top graduate school in advertising and marketing. Avnet served as Professor and Chair of the Creative Technology Track at the Brandcenter, which is part of the VCU's School of Mass Communications.

At 360i Avnet will educate employees on cross-functional skills and conduct intensive training to inspire big ideas catalyzed by the collaboration of strategy, technology and creative. For 360i's roster of Fortune 500 marketers, Avnet will expand the agency's thought leadership programs and leading client workshops that advise marketers on how to leverage digital technologies to create closer connections between people and brands. He will report to Sarah Hofstetter, SVP of Emerging Media & Brand Strategy at 360i.

"Beyond deep digital expertise, leading agencies must be equipped to harness the full power of new technologies," said Hofstetter. "These new tools give us the power to build more creative and meaningful ways to connect brands with people. Mark will facilitate stronger connections between culture, design and technology to help us lead a new wave of thinking for marketers."

Prior to VCU, Avnet served on the faculty at New York University and Marist College, and chaired the Communications & Information Design programs at The Sage Colleges. He was also founding Director of New Media at global production company @radical.media and Executive Producer at Hearst New Media.

Avnet's agency background includes roles at Ammirati Purls Lintas's APL Digital (SVP, Director of Production & Technology) and Lot21 Interactive Marketing (CTO & head of its Emerging Media Development Lab) -- the latter of which specifically focused on exploring strategic uses of technology to connect people and brands. Mark holds Masters Degrees in Interactive Telecommunications and Media Psychology.

"360i is in a unique and truly special position to utilize cross-disciplined thinking to solve real business problems on behalf of its clients," said Avnet. "I am inspired to join a company that recognizes the importance of weaving education within the very fabric of its culture."

About 360i:
360i is an award-winning digital marketing agency that drives results for Fortune 500 marketers through insights, ideas and technologies. 360i helps its clients think differently about their online presence and evolve their strategies to take advantage of the new world of marketing communications -- one where brands and consumers engage in interactive and multi-directional conversations. 360i was selected to Ad Age's Agency A-List and Fast Company's roster of the "World's Most Innovative Companies." Current clients include Oreo, jcpenney, Coca-Cola, NBC Universal and Diageo, among others. For more information, please visit blog.360i.com or follow us on Twitter @360i.

Press Contact:

Amanda Bird
Director of Marketing
abird@360i.com
212.991.4346