After nearly 30 years at BBDO and 23 years in the US, former AMV BBDO CEO Andrew Robertson has become chairman of the 7,000-person Omnicom Group network.
Robertson said: “It’s time for a new era… I am not retiring. I want to do the job of chairman, and I want to do it because it’s something I think I can add value with.” New CEO Nancy Reyes Reyes, meanwhile, says she is happy to have his “guidance and support”.
Reyes, joined as CEO of The Americas last year from sister Omnicom agency TBWA. Robertson says that he hired her with this move in mind, and she’s turned out to be “everything that I’d hoped for and more”.
There are no plans to move anyone else into Reyes’ former position, although last week BBDO poached Wieden+Kennedy president Jiah Choi to be CEO of the agency’s New York and Chicago offices.
There’s been quite a bit of change at the top of BBDO, including the departure of global CCO David Lubars, who retired in April to be replaced by Chris Beresford-Hill, another TBWA alumnus.
John Wren, chairman and CEO of Omnicom, said: “We have been extremely lucky to have an industry titan at the helm of BBDO for over two decades. Andrew’s passion for the business was felt by his people and clients alike, always hands on to ensure the network maintained its industry leading standards of creativity.”
Robertson, 64, was once tipped to take over from 72 year-old Wren at some point, and this move could mean he’s still in the running; BBDO is doing pretty well and has won Cannes Lions network of the year seven times under Robertson’s tenure. Unless Wren’s use of the past tense is telling us something?
