Saatchi CCO Kate Stanners joins PR giant Edelman in suprise move

Kate Stanners, one of the UK and global ad industry’s best-known creatives, is jumping ship from Saatchi and Saatchi to independently-owned PR giant Edelman.

Stanners (below) currently chairwoman and global CCO at Saatchi, will become chief CCO international at Edelman, reporting to another former ad agency exec global CCO Judy John.

Stanners says: “Earned media has become such a powerful tool in a brand’s communications armoury, building community, conversation and connection in impactful ways. There’s a freedom that comes when you truly unleash the unreasonable power of creativity on real business problems.

“I look forward to collaborating with Edelman’s talented teams across the network to build work that not only stands out but makes a difference.”

Edelman CEO Richard Edelman says: “We are doubling down on creative while others in the sector are moving in the opposite direction. Kate is one of the most formidable creative leaders in the industry, and I’m thrilled to finally welcome her to Edelman after trying to recruit her for five years.

“This is a moment in time for Edelman to emerge as a creative powerhouse. We believe in creative based on action and our deep understanding of earned creative in the creator economy and our position at the intersection of brand and reputation makes us uniquely equipped to lead the industry forward.”

Edelman has won numerous awards gong in recent years for its efforts challenging conventional ad agencies.

Stanners’ unexpected departure is a blow for Saatchi and owner Publicis Groupe. Network creative agencies are a tough brief these days with clients cutting back and media money pouring into digital and social. Publicis, although it’s outperforming its rivals including the one-time biggest WPP, is a hard-driving operation under CEO Arthur Sadoun and it has lost a number of senior agency execs recently including numerous changes at the top of Saatchi UK.