ATB Financial has hired Brian Hickling as creative director.

Hickling, who started this week, will lead Channel 21, the bank’s internal creative agency. The creative director role at Channel 21 was most recently handled by Dennis Lenarduzzi, who had been filling the position on a contract basis since 2015 while the bank searched for a permanent CD.

Hickling is a veteran of Halifax’s advertising scene, having most recently been partner and creative brand strategist at The Give Agency. He has also led creative departments at Extreme (now Arrivals + Departures) and Colour, and has had stints at Toronto agencies including Publicis, Saatchi & Saatchi, Cossette, Leo Burnett and Bensimon Byrne. He has worked with a range of different clients, including Paypal, BMO and Freedom 55 Financial.

In September, ATB launched a new brand platform focused on how the bank supports and listens to customers to help them keep up with the changes they experience in their lives and the world around them.

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Other recent campaigns led by ATB’s internal agency include “Amplify,” a campaign aimed at reaching Alberta’s growing community of entrepreneurs, which won a pair of awards at the 2018 CASSIES.

Last month, it was also announced that ATB’s president and CEO, Dave Mowat, would be retiring this year.