Top-ranking Kiwi exec Mark D'Arcy to depart Facebook

Business executive Mark D'Arcy on a visit to Auckland in 2015. Photo / Nick Reed

Facebook creative chief Mark D'Arcy has announced his resignation after a decade with Facebook.

The high-flying New Zealander first joined the social media company in 2011 as the director of global creative solutions.

In this role, he led Facebook's Creative Shop, an in-house operation made up of a team of creative strategists in cities around the world tasked with helping marketers innovate on the Facebook platform.

D'Arcy, whose role will end in early September, thanked Facebook for his 10 years at the company.

"I've decided the time has come for me to leave the company," he said.

"It's hard to easily sum up the last 10 years other than to say I am immensely proud of the teams I've been fortunate to be part of and the business we worked to build.

"I am also very grateful that my various roles here enabled me to work with, and learn from, so many curious, demanding, brilliant and generous people. Not just within Facebook but also at so many companies, not-for-profits and organisations in almost every corner of the world."

Before the pandemic, D'Arcy made numerous trips to New Zealand to talk to local marketers about using Facebook as an advertising platform.

Three years ago, his role was expanded to include vice-president of global marketing.

D'Arcy's high profile creative career didn't start at Facebook.

Before joining the social media giant, he spent a seven-year tenure as the chief creative officer at Warner Brothers.

Earlier in his career, he quickly worked up the ranks at multi-national advertising agency DMB&B to take on the position of vice-president/creative director by the age of 23.

D'Arcy has long been the highest-ranking New Zealander working at Facebook, but he wasn't the only one.

Earlier this year, Facebook hired Nicky Bell as the vice-president of the Facebook Creative Shop.

She was brought in from advertising agency R/GA specifically to take over the role D'Arcy held prior to having his responsibilities expanded.

Bell is also an over-achiever in the advertising field, having led Saatchi & Saatchi in the local market before taking on a new challenge in Los Angeles.