{"id":17636,"date":"2019-06-11T03:12:48","date_gmt":"2019-06-11T03:12:48","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/armytimes\/uncategorized\/2019\/06\/11\/armys-billion-dollar-ad-machine-is-moving-to-chicago-will-it-work\/"},"modified":"2026-08-08T02:02:31","modified_gmt":"2026-08-08T02:02:31","slug":"armys-billion-dollar-ad-machine-is-moving-to-chicago-will-it-work","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/armytimes\/news\/your-army\/2019\/06\/11\/armys-billion-dollar-ad-machine-is-moving-to-chicago-will-it-work\/","title":{"rendered":"Army\u2019s billion-dollar ad machine is moving to Chicago. Will it work?"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

The Army\u2019s marketing arm, responsible for dishing out billion-dollar contracts for advertising efforts like recruiting, is moving from its long-time headquarters near the Pentagon to Chicago in an effort to get closer to the talent, according to Army officials.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

A May 30 memo<\/a> by Secretary of the Army Mark Esper<\/a> announced the move, which comes after the service awarded a $4 billion contract to DDB Chicago, a full-service ad agency in the city.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The company will be responsible for a range of initiatives intended to build brand perception and drive leads for marketing and recruiting needs led by the Army Marketing and Research Group<\/a>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The contract was a big win for the city, with Chicago Mayor Rahm Emanuel hailing it as a \u201ctremendous achievement that brings billions of dollars of investment to Chicago and will support hundreds of good-paying jobs.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Beginning in August, the Army will start looking at the transition plan, Army spokesman Lt. Col. Emmanuel Ortiz-Cruz told Army Times. That process involves selecting a new building space and moving \u201cunder 50\u201d personnel throughout the fall and winter, he said. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cIn 2020, beginning next year, that\u2019s when they\u2019re going to be fully operational,\u201d he said. \u201cYou have the talent there and you have the new contract with DDB, which it will be co-located near.”<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cThere\u2019s no plan yet, it was just an order, and now we\u2019re kind of working through the process of re-designing. We know they\u2019re moving to Chicago, but not where in Chicago,” Ortiz-Cruz added.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The change in location and new contract could help with the Army\u2019s recruiting shortfalls, as it has struggled to meet its goal of a 500,000-strong active-duty force<\/a> by the end of the next decade.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The move also comes after Adweek, which first reported<\/a> the story, uncovered that an internal audit<\/a> found millions of dollars in \u201cineffective marketing programs\u201d during fiscal year 2016. In selecting DDB as its new ad agency partner, the Army severed its contracts with McCann Worldgroup, which had been the Army\u2019s ad firm for more than a decade, according to Military.com<\/a>.<\/p>\n\n\n\t