Fiona Johnston, who has been CEO of UM Australia since 2017, has been appointed by IPG Mediabrands as chief growth officer global/EMEA. It’s a new role that includes working with IPG on group co-ordination.
Australia is becoming a breeding ground for global agency talent, with DDB Worldwide recently promoting Marty O’Halloran to global CEO, from chairman and CEO of DDB Group Australia and New Zealand.
Johnston went to university in Edinburgh and then spent five years in London, working at Levi Strauss and Havas Media. She moved to Australia in 2005, where her career took off with roles at Lowe Hunt, Publicis Mojo and Mediacom, then a two-year stint as a management consultant before moving to UM Australia in the CEO role.
During her time at UM, Johnston led the agency to big account wins including the Australian Government, David Jones, Menulog, Mattel and Nestle and has retained the accounts of Coca-Cola, ING and Kmart.
Johnston said: “I am sad to be leaving the team at such an exciting time for UM in Australia. It really is the best bunch of strong, amazing humans and I’m so proud to have been a part of our shared success. Equally the opportunity to craft more of this globally is a great honour indeed. I am excited to work with the global and Europe team to help bring it to life, as I know only we can.”
