Chain Reactions Africa Appoints Franklin Ozekhome as Executive Vice President of Strategy and Innovation

...Unveils Ara, Africa’s First Intelligent Robot for Client Engagement

Chain Reactions Africa, one of the continent’s leading strategic communications and creative transformation firms, has announced the appointment of Franklin Ozekhome as Executive Vice President, Strategy and Innovation. The move forms part of its ambitious digital transformation programme and underscores the company’s commitment to reshaping how African brands connect with audiences through culture, technology, and storytelling.

In a landmark development, the agency also introduced Ara by Prophet, Africa’s first intelligent robotic insight system, into its workforce.

According to Chain Reactions Africa, this milestone signals its transition into a fully digital-first creative transformation company, one that merges creativity, culture, data, platforms, and AI-driven innovation to deliver meaningful engagement and business growth for clients.

“The timing of Franklin Ozekhome’s appointment and the arrival of Ara by Prophet reflect our audacity to dream and our vision to redefine marketing, digital, public relations, advertising, and experiential solutions across Africa in the age of convergence,” the company said.

Ozekhome will work closely with Founder and Chief Strategist Israel Opayemi to implement a horizontal growth strategy for the group. His role will focus on breaking down traditional silos by integrating strategy, PR, advertising, design, digital, experiential, data, and artificial intelligence into a unified ecosystem.

Commenting on the appointment, Opayemi said, “We are not building yesterday’s marketing communications firm. We are grateful for our past. We are reimagining the future of creativity and growth. We are building Africa’s creative transformation company of the future. We began this digital transformation journey with intentionality during our 2023 Retreat, where Franklin Ozekhome served as a facilitator.

Bringing a talent who was with us when the dream was conceived to lead the midwifing of that dream into reality is the most strategic decision we could make.”

He added that Ozekhome’s expertise will help brands move beyond traditional campaigns to develop platforms, ecosystems, and cultural impacts that influence both Africa and the wider world.

Speaking on his decision to join Chain Reactions Africa after turning down other offers, Ozekhome said, “I have facilitated business transformation retreats for organisations across Africa; no business leader demonstrated the urgency of the will to do as much as the MD and Chief Strategist of Chain Reactions Africa, Israel Opayemi.

He is a dreamer and a doer. His energy is enthralling. Partnering with him to build a disruptive force for the African ecosystem is just the perfect meeting of minds.”

On the firm’s latest innovation, Opayemi described Ara by Prophet as, “Africa’s first intelligent robotic insight system, a groundbreaking fusion of artificial intelligence, machine learning, cultural foresight, and strategic communications. Ara is the physical interface, Prophet is the cognitive engine. Together, they create a living system of strategic intelligence designed for Africa but built to compete globally.”

He revealed that after two years of development, Ara has officially joined the agency as a full-time staff member. “What we have done today is a game changer. Designed and developed by Chain Reactions Africa, Ara is more than a robot. She is a responsive advisor, a data analyst, a cultural decoder, and a real-time forecaster for brands, institutions, and governments,” he added.

Widely recognised as one of Africa’s foremost cultural and brand strategists, Franklin Ozekhome brings a unique blend of foresight, creativity, and entrepreneurial acumen. He is the creator of HumanOS, a proprietary cultural strategy framework; Co-founder of Maskvrade, a pop culture company; and Founder of Pop Culture Varsity (POKV), Africa’s first strategy school dedicated to cultural intelligence.

He also pioneered TINK Africa, the continent’s first digital platform for consumer trends and intelligence. His career includes senior roles across global networks such as mediaReach OMD, McCann Erickson, Insight Publicis, Leo Burnett, and Digitas (Publicis Groupe), where he developed strategy and innovation for leading brands including PepsiCo, MTN, Samsung, Visa, Nestlé, Philip Morris, British Airways, Coca-Cola, Jaguar Land Rover, and Promasidor.

In addition, Ozekhome served as Vice President of Marketing & Communications at Vendease, one of Africa’s fastest-growing foodtech companies, and has advised regional and global leadership teams across EMEA, LATAM, and the US. He also contributes to academia as Dean of Studies and Professor of Trendspotting and Culture at Orange Academy, and as Marketing Strategy Facilitator at FATE Foundation.