Creative Strategy Director.

Frank van de Koppel · Hotwire Global

Amsterdam, Netherlands
Working globally

Frank van de Koppel

Athens, May 2026 – taken by Anol Bhattacharya on B&W film

Background

The kind of work brands remember, and competitors copy.

I've spent nearly fifteen years at the intersection of creative thinking and business outcomes. Not because I had a plan, but because that's where the interesting work lives. The gap between a good brief and a great idea – that's the space I'm drawn to.

My career has moved through some of the sharpest creative environments in Europe: Wavemaker, TLGG, Rethink, HPB. Along the way I've built social platforms for BMW and Porsche from the ground up, put Volkswagen at the top of SXSW, and helped Netflix become the most-awarded social brand in the Netherlands. At Hotwire, I lead the European Digital Studio – a team I've grown from two people to eight, covering creative strategy, content production, video and AI consulting.

What drives me is the belief that the best creative work doesn't just perform – it shifts something. A perception, a conversation, how a category thinks about itself. I bring strategic clarity to moments that need it most, and creative ambition to work that deserves more than safe.

I operate globally. Based in Amsterdam; the work goes wherever the work takes it.

My why

"In my work, I am not afraid to go where none have gone before."

I got into this to make things people care about. Not just scroll past – but actually stop for. That means creating work that is useful, beautiful or meaningful; ideally all three.

It means leading teams that do their best thinking, not just their best execution. It means being honest about what works and what doesn't. And it means never treating inclusion or ethics as footnotes.

01

LGBTQIA+ Advocacy

Inclusion and representation aren't add-ons – they're built into how I approach every brief, every team, every piece of work.

02

Coaching Culture

The best work comes from teams that feel empowered to think. I lead by creating conditions for that – not just directing outcomes.

03

Creative Ethics

Brands can make the world better – but only if they're willing to do the harder work of earning people's attention rather than buying it.

Approach

How
I work.

I work best in the space between strategy and execution – where a clear point of view meets the realities of getting things made. That means being genuinely hands-on: developing frameworks and getting into the work when the work needs it.

My approach is built around a simple belief: planning is how we create certainty in uncertain spaces. Every campaign I lead is anchored in a clear strategic framework before a single piece of content is briefed. The Content Network methodology I developed at Hotwire is a direct expression of that – it connects PESO channels into a compound system that builds momentum over time, not just campaign peaks.

I've led global teams across five countries, worked across B2B and consumer, and moved fluidly between senior-level strategic counsel and hands-on creative direction. I'm at home presenting to a CMO and equally at home sitting with a creative team wrestling with a brief that isn't quite there yet.

Collaboration is always a dialogue – never a broadcast. And the only standard I hold work to is the one that matters: does it shift something?

Expertise

Skill
set.

Hover any skill to learn more.

Languages

Dutch (native) · English (bilingual) · German (professional)

Recognition

BCM Silver · Best Social Brand · Bronze Lion · 10+ additional

Based

Amsterdam, Netherlands. Working globally.

Next step

Let's
talk.

I'm always open to conversations about great work – a new challenge, a collaboration, or just a good idea that needs the right people behind it.

Get in touch