It's hard to keep up with all the latest moves across media, marketing and advertising, so we've made a list. Check out the biggest moves in adland this week.
Publicis Media appoints CEO
Publicis Media has appointed Toby Barbour as CEO of its Australian and New Zealand operations, following the departure of Matt James earlier this year. Barbour will stay on as interim CEO of Starcom until a replacement is named. He will report to Publicis Media EMEA and APAC CEO, Gerry Boyle, as well as Publicis Groupe Australia and New Zealand CEO, Michael Rebelo.
Commbank's new head of marketing
Priscilla Sims Brown, a former journalist, stockbroker and startup CEO, will be the new head of marketing at the Commonwealth Bank. The appointment of the American is the latest response at rebuilding trust following revelations of misconduct at the financial services royal commission. CEO Matt Comyn decided to split the role of group general counsel and group executive group corporate affairs on the retirement of Anna Lenahan.
KPMG promotes Sudeep Gohil
KPMG Australia has promoted current head of brand Sudeep Gohil to the role of partner within the firm. The former Droga5 Australia CEO joined the business in August last year, relocating back to Australia after a stint with Publicis India. Gohil currently works within KPMG’s Customer, Brand and Marketing Advisory services division helping clients with brand strategy and providing strategic guidance to KPMG’s own brand and market position. Gohil has also worked with brands including Nike, Levi's, Coca-Cola, P&G, Netflix and UNICEF.
McCann Melbourne boosts creative team
McCann Melbourne has bolstered its creative team with the appointment of Guilherme Machado as writer and Alex Newman as art director. Machado and Newman join the team from DDB Sydney, relocating to Melbourne for the role to work alongside creative director Andrew Woodhead and managing partner of strategy Simon McCrudden. The duo created the PetMe Campaign for PetRescue Australia, the world’s first AI to understand dogs, as well one of McDonald’s Monopoly campaigns in 2018 while at DDB Sydney.
The Works snares former Big Red CEO
The Works, part of the RXP Group, has appointed former Big Red CEO Bridget Cleary to lead its Melbourne office, as part of its expansion in Victoria. Cleary joins as managing partner from Big Red where for more than five years she oversaw the independent agency’s doubling in size and transformation of digital capabilities across clients including Medibank, Coles and Optus. The Works co-founder and creative partner Kevin Macmillan will work with Cleary to build the Melbourne office.
Movember hires Clemenger's Jason Olive
Global men’s health charity the Movember Foundation has appointed Jason Olive to lead the organisation’s local marketing and communication efforts. Olive is the former communications strategy director for Clemenger BBDO and has experience in media and creative agencies in both Australia and the UK. He will take responsibility for delivering Movember’s year-round global marketing and comms strategy in the newly created position of Australian marketing director from July. Olive has worked with brands such as Mars, DrinkWise, Wesfarmers, Coles and Treasury Wine Estates.
VMO bolsters outdoor division
VMO has revealed a series of key leadership appointments as it continues its growth in the outdoor advertising industry. Geoff Cochrane has been promoted to national sales director, VMO and will be leading the sales team across the three VMO products – Shop, On-the-go and Active. Including Cochrane, an additional seven roles are to be added to the business across Australia over the next few months. Lucy Porter will also join VMO as group sales manager coming from JCDecaux from 15 July. Carolyne Wearne will continue her role as sales director Val Morgan/VMO for Queensland, and Madison Bayley has been promoted to account manager VMO.
Kmart marketer moves to Flight Centre
Flight Centre has named Joachim Holte, Kmart’s digital marketer, as its CMO. Holte has been with the retail giant for more than two years as its head of digital marketing. In his new role he will report to Flight Centre executive general manager, Allisa O’Connell, focusing on the brand’s marketing and digital experience departements. Holte has previously worked at Yahoo!, as well as the CMO for travel search site we.go in Singapore.
HBK names new partner
Melbourne creative and digital agency HBT has rebranded as HBK with its digital director Luke Kelly joining co-founders David Hayes and Michael Berry as a partner in the business. Kelly has been a partner with the agency now since late 2018. In addition to the rebrand and new partnership, long-term staffer Sheridan Devereux has been promoted to general manager and art director Stuart Penny has been promoted to creative director.
InVision appoints first APAC MD
US digital product design platform InVision has appointed Tom Richardson as its first APAC managing director as it expands across the region. Richardson will work closely with the team in Sydney and across the APAC region. He brings a vast amount of experience to the role, having previously been a vice president at US software firm Acquia, a WPP fellow, and an advisor to the Cloud Software Association. He also spent two years in Japan working for the Tokyo 2016 Olympic and Paralympic Bid Committee, and a year in Shanghai with WPP Group.
TEG nabs Slingshot Media's head of digital
Asia Pacific ticketing, live entertainment and data analytics business TEG has appointed Chris Johnston as its newest head of digital. Johnston joins from Slingshot Media, where he held a similar role, and will take over from Karen Chapple who leaves the business after six years. Prior to Slingshot, Johnston was at Carat Australia as head of digital and direct for Woolworths and previously worked for McCann Erickson as a general manager. Dominic White will also join TEG as the organisation’s head of communications and corporate affairs. He brings to the role over 20 years’ experience in media and communications both in Australia and the United Kingdom.
UMS enters Australian market
Digital marketing agency United Media Solutions (UMS) has appointed Amit Moorjani as business development director for the Sydney office. Moorjani has previously worked in business development roles for Experian, Marketo, Sitecore, IPMG and Val Morgan. He will be the key contact in the UMS Sydney office, responsible for assisting UMS Australia’s new business activities and will work closely with the UMS teams in Melbourne and Auckland to ensure an integrated approach to the Australian and New Zealand business.
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