The agency said Lambie-Nairn will focus on improving the look and feel of TNS’s materials, and will be “directly involved” in client work and pitches. He will have a separate remit from Aziz Cami who is creative director for Kantar, the WPP-owned research group of which TNS is a part.

TNS CEO Eric Salama said the agency wanted to “embed a creative approach” into all of its client work.

Lambie-Nairn will work with local management teams to develop creative capabilities, and with global marketing director Tim Isaac on the agency’s brand identity.

He first made his name in the world of design, and is particuarly well known for his work in the TV industry. His agency, Lambie-Nairn, developed the Channel 4 brand in the 1980s and went on to rebrand the BBC in the 1990s. It also developed the brand of mobile network O2, which replaced BT Cellnet in 2002.

The Lambie-Nairn agency was bought by WPP in 1999. Lambie-Nairn himself left in 2008 and joined branding agency Heavenly as creative director.

Salama said: “I’m thrilled that Martin is joining us. I have long admired his work and his ability to drive creative standards higher, and we share a common passion to see creativity at the heart of strategic work.”

Lambie-Nairn said the job was “a fantastic opportunity to boost success by placing creativity at the heart of the business”.

• TNS also announced today that it is working with French online ad measurement firm Alenty to provide a new tool for gauging the effectiveness of online display ads. TNS Digital AdEffect takes into account whether an ad was fully or only partially displayed on a viewer’s screen and for how long, in order to measure engagement. It will be available in the UK, France, Germany and Spain, with plans to bring it to more countries soon.