Plus1 Assembly Hires OLIVER's Ben Burns as Head of Operations

Jul. 18, 2025

Plus1 Assembly, the global innovation agency launched by LADbible co-founder Arian Kalantari, has hired Ben Burns as its Head of Operations.

Reporting to Co-founder and CEO Jax Davey, Burns will play an integral role in setting the agency up for growth, as it sets out to build a new agency operational model and help brands lead in the AI era.

Burns joins from OLIVER, the in-house marketing specialists where he was UK Group Delivery Director for three years. He worked across all its UK clients, including Barclaycard and Boots; and was part of the senior leadership team, reporting to the UK CEO.

Earlier in his career, Burns spent over six years at Marketing in Partnership, as Director of Design and Production, working with clients including Schroders, AVIVA Investors and BNY Mellon Investment Management.

Ben Burns, Head of Operations at Plus1 Assembly commented:

“I’ve spent the last few years refining my craft inside a business that disrupted the industry with the in-housing model. That’s given me a unique view on how to approach marketing operations for scale and change. I’ve joined Plus1 to help build the next wave of change. We’re building an operating model that moves with culture and delivers real outcomes for clients. In this moment of industry shifts, this feels exciting, genuinely different, and something I’m really proud to be a part of.”

 

Jax Davey, CEO of Plus1 Assembly, said of the new appointment:

“We have an incredible opportunity to create the much-needed change in our industry. After spending some time with Ben, it was clear he was the right person to build a new model from the ground up. I am very excited by what we can now do with his experience and hunger to make this a success.”

 

Launched in early July, Plus1 Assembly has secured a £5m backing from Simba Investments and launches with clients including sports, tech, and gaming company Rezzil; sports media company The Stomping Ground; and AI-powered tech consulting and delivery company CodeBlaze. It has also acquired Layfe, a strategic AI consultancy, which will help further power its work shaping and building tomorrow’s leading brands.