DAZN names Mayer chair of board
Kevin Mayer has been appointed as Chairman of the Board of Directors at sports streaming platform DAZN Group. He will provide strategic direction to DAZN’s leadership team as the company continues along its aggressive growth trajectory. Previous Chairman, John Skipper, will remain on the Board and serve as a Strategic Adviser.

Mayer was previously Chairman of Direct-to-Consumer and International at The Walt Disney Company. There, he launched and ran the company’s streaming businesses including Disney+, Hulu, ESPN+, and Hotstar, as well as overseeing Disney’s global advertising sales, content sales, channels sales, and international operations. Prior to that role, Mayer served as Disney’s Chief Strategy Officer, leading the acquisitions of Pixar, Marvel, Lucasfilm, 21^st Century Fox, and BamTech.

“As Chairman, I’m looking forward to partnering with the management team and my fellow directors to help DAZN build on its impressive track record of success in developing a truly global sports platform,” said Mayer. “Since I began working with Access Industries last year, I’ve been impressed with DAZN’s ambitions and ability to quickly grow from a new entrant to an important player in key markets throughout the world. I look forward to guiding DAZN’s strategic development into its next chapter.”

Business Director duo join DDB
DDB Worldwide, an Omnicom-owned advertising network, has hired Varsha Kaura as Global Business Director for DDB North America and Vanessa Reyes as Group Business Director for DDB New York.

Kaura will have overall responsibility of leading the cross-market teams servicing Mars Incorporated. Operating within DDB Chicago and reporting to Justin Thomas-Copeland, CEO of DDB North America, she will be responsible for strengthening Mars Incorporated global relationships across multiple geographies and individual agency offices, including adam&eveDDB, DDB Chicago, DDB Guangzhou, DDB Mudra, DDB Mexico, and DDB New York.

Kaura was previously a member of the core leadership at Motista, where she led strategy and client relations across a variety of industries.

“Varsha brings a unique mix of extensive creative agency experience combined with C-Suite management consultancy leadership in data and analytics driven strategy. We are excited for the new value creation we will bring to Mars Incorporated through data-driven creativity to further catapult their brand,” said Thomas-Copeland. “Varsha will bring her unique set of skills adding a new dimension of creative problem-solving to our clients, using data and insight to fuel our creativity for Mars Incorporated.”

Reyes will lead a broad group of client businesses, bringing a new perspective to strengthen the agency’s client relationships. She has over 15 years of experience in integrated marketing and has partnered with brands such as MetLife, Instagram, Lego, ESPN, and Verizon. Previous to this role, Reyes held the position of Group Managing Director at R/GA.

“The addition of the Vanessa to the DDB New York leadership team is the perfect manifestation of creativity and connection – both needed to drive business growth today,” said Thomas-Copeland. “Vanessa is a truly integrated thinker and business leader. She brings progressive digital-first experience, and we will marry this to the progressive business questions and expectations our clients are engaging us in. Vanessa represents the new direction and skill base of DDB NAM.”

News UK hires Cosa as Data GM
Pedro Cosa has been named as Data General Manager at News UK, the publisher behind The Sun and The Times. Reporting to Chief Operating Officer David Dinsmore, he will be responsible for driving a joined-up data vision and strategy across the whole business. He will lead the company’s Data Hub, optimising the value of data and insight, and working with senior leaders from all divisions and brands to ensure that strategic decision-making is fuelled by data.

Most recently, at Warner Media, Cosa led the transformation of a cross-platform data and intelligence function to support the company’s expansion across its portfolio of network and streaming brands in EMEA including Cartoon Network, Boomerang, Adult Swim, Boing, Cartoonito, HBO, and TCM.

“I’m hugely excited to be joining such a talented team at News,” said Cosa. “They have a roster of brands which sit at the heart of the national conversation, engaging millions every day. Gaining an ever-better understanding of who those millions are, how they connect with the brands and how they connect with the world will open up more opportunities for News UK, and for its commercial partners.”

Pair of senior execs join MediaCom’s US team
WPP media agency network MediaCom has recruited Liza Davidian as Executive Vice President of Investment & Activation and Yorlene Goff as Executive Director of People. Both will join the executive committee and report to Sasha Savic, US CEO of MediaCom.

Davidian will lead the agencys future-forward investment vision, including client investment strategies that are holistic in approach and united end-end with planning and analytics and adaptable to the evolving consumer landscape. Across her over 20 years in the media industry, she has worked with clients including General Mills, Clorox, SCJ, CBS, CW, Showtime, Wells Fargo, Experian, Levi Strauss & Co., Ancestry.com, and McDonalds.

Goff will lead the agency’s ‘people first’ culture, nurturing a workforce and environment where everyone feels empowered to fulfill their potential and making continued progress in creating a diverse, equitable, and inclusive workplace. She joins MediaCom from Publicis Spine, where she served as Chief Talent Officer responsible for driving strategic global talent structure optimisation within the platform, technology, and data & analytics teams across brand agencies and local markets.

“Transformation and the opportunities for growth never stop – for our clients and ourselves,” said Savic. “Liza and Yorlene bring with them excellence in their craft and are both critical in our mission of working with the most ambitious clients, having the most advanced products, and cultivating the most talented workforce. Their respective contributions are vital in our Seeing the Bigger Picture vision and for MediaCom to have continued successes and growth in 2021 and beyond.”

VidMob turns to De Castro on growth
Matty de Castro has joined VidMob, a creative analytics platform, as Vice President of Growth and Operations. He will expand VidMob’s business intelligence practice and build a global sales organisation to support small and medium-sized businesses.

Prior to VidMob, De Castro spent 12 years at Facebook, most recently as Head of North American Scaled Accounts. During his tenure, he led their earliest and current monetisation programs, laying the groundwork for business growth, and helping to evolve Facebook into a dominant marketing services platform. Earlier in his career, De Castro held leadership positions at Arkadium, Pulse 360, Ticketmaster, and Citysearch, working with clients including Walmart, General Mills, Nestle, Leo Burnett, Sony, National Geographic, and 20^th Century Fox.

“For years, I’ve watched firsthand as marketers of all sizes have struggled to evolve their creative operations to keep pace with the needs of today’s opportunities,” said De Castro. “I’ve also witnessed just how impactful VidMob’s platform can be in improving advertiser efficiency and results. As creative intelligence gives rise to a new category of first-party data, VidMob’s ability to bring data and creativity together in one place is one of the most exciting developments I’ve seen in a long time, and I’m so excited to join the team and get to work.”

Garrubbo elevated to chair of board at IAB
The Interactive Advertising Bureau (IAB) has elected Gina Garrubbo as Chair of its Board of Directors.

Garrubbo, President and Chief Executive Officer of National Public Media, has served as the IAB Board’s Vice Chair since August 2020 and Co-Chair of the IAB Audio Committee since 2017. Krishan Bhatia, President & Chief Business Officer of Global Advertising Partnerships at NBCUniversal, has been elected to serve as Vice Chair.

“Having worked across different disciplines within media and marketing, I have been able to experience first-hand the vital role that IAB plays in driving the industry forward,” said Garrubbo. “There has never been a more important time to be part of IAB as the industry is going through a tremendous reset and reinvention. I look forward to working alongside IAB CEO David Cohen, the Board of Directors, and IAB members to help guide this industry forward and to continue to ensure that we create vibrant marketplaces that foster innovation and collaboration.”

LiveXLive recruits Vick to lead programming
Andy Vick has been named Head of Programming at livestream and on-demand audio platform LiveXLive, as well as Executive Vice President of the company’s newly formed content division, StudioOne. He will create and expand digitally native content to drive subscribers, sponsors, and new revenue streams across the LiveXLive flywheel.

Vick was most recently President of Virtual Reality and Immersive Entertainment at STX Entertainment. In 2015, he co-founded and was Chief Content Officer for Surreal, where over 100 VR experiences were produced under his leadership. Surreal was acquired by STX in 2016.

“LiveXLive has purposely engineered themselves for a future where talent and partners can walk right through the front door and plug directly into their comprehensive and fully integrated flywheel. From interactive live streaming to on-demand video, podcasts, digital radio, OTT apps, in-person events, and custom physical goods…they are a one-stop-shop,” Vick commented. “Everyone knows this is where the music and entertainment business is headed, and lucky for me, LiveXLive is already there.  Im humbled at the opportunity and looking forward to working with the LiveXLive team to keep pushing boundaries.”

Gorman takes seat on Samba board
Samba TV, a television data and omniscreen measurement platform, has added Jeremi Gorman to its Board of Directors.

Gorman has served as Chief Business Officer at Snap Inc. since 2018, where she is responsible for revenue and customer operations across the company. Before joining Snap, she spent several years at Amazon, most recently as Global Head of Field Sales for Amazon Advertising. Gorman also held senior advertising and sales positions at Yahoo! And Variety Magazine.

“Ever since discovering Samba TV during my time at Amazon, I have been impressed by the critical role the company plays in reinventing the television model for today’s viewer that consumes video across all screens,” said Gorman. “I am eager to work with the team and contribute my perspective to further advance its market position.”

TabMo welcomes Phillips as Non-exec Director
Ben Phillips has been appointed as mobile advertising firm TabMo’s first Non-executive Director.

Phillips has spent 17 years working in the mobile advertising space. His career-path includes five years at MediaCom as Global Head of Mobile. This was followed by the role of Vice President of Strategic Accounts at Blis, where he worked with agencies and brands direct to overcome challenges and drive return on their advertising investment. 

“With direct experience of using TabMo’s platform while at MediaCom, I have seen first-hand the reliability of its platform and the results it delivers; this is combined with a culture that actively encourages inspiration and innovation,” said Phillips. “I jumped at the opportunity to work with such a robust business during its dramatic growth and development.”

Brown takes up advisory role at TVSquared
TVSquared, a cross-platform TV ad measurement company, has announced Andy Brown as Executive Adviser. He will provide strategic counsel to TVSquared’s Board and executive team.

Brown was most recently Global Chief Executive Officer for Kantar Media. Between 2013 and 2020, he helped Kantar significantly develop its media business and played a key role in the acquisition of TNS PLC and, subsequently, the sale of its majority stake to Bain Capital. He also led the expansion of services into more than 50 markets worldwide.

“As TV viewership continues to fragment, it has never been more critical for advertisers to measure the impact of TV and reach the right audiences at scale,” said Brown. “TVSquared is the real deal – its proven, always-on platform is used by thousands of buy- and sell-side clients to measure TV how people consume it, across platforms and screens. To be armed with precise insights into optimal reach and frequency, the publishers and inventory driving performance and the audiences watching and engaging with ads is game changing for any brand.”

Malwarebytes announces Strassman as CPO
Mark Strassman has been appointed Chief Product Officer at cybersecurity platform Malwarebytes. He will lead the product teams to put a renewed emphasis on the customer, evaluate new market opportunities, and deliver solutions to unmet and unarticulated needs. His focus will centre on creating superior customer experiences across both the consumer and corporate product lines to continue to accelerate customer acquisition and retention growth.

Strassman joins Malwarebytes from LogMeIn, where he was General Manger of their Unified Communication and Collaboration product portfolio. While there, he drove growth in the core UCC business, moving from dozens of products to a single, integrated UCC platform, driving up usage, customer satisfaction, and retention rates. He also led product, design, and integrated portfolio strategy at BlueJeans, and has held leadership roles at Blackboard, Autodesk, Adobe Systems, and Macromedia.

“Malwarebytes presents a unique opportunity to help align the needs of multiple customers and be a contributor to an incredible stage of the companys growth,” said Strassman. “Im excited to join such a seasoned and accomplished executive team and help deliver a differentiated value proposition which puts our customers at the center of everything we do.”

Three elevated at MiQ
MiQ, a programmatic media partner, has announced three promotions across its senior executive management team to bolster its European expansion. Giles Ivey has been promoted to EMEA CEO, Van Sideras has been named EMEA COO, and Freddie Turner moves to the role of UK MD.

Ivey, who was previously UK CEO, joined MiQ almost three years ago having previously been a Non-executive Board Member and then Global CRO at Avid Media. Prior to this, he was UK Managing Director at Collective.

“Weve globalised in all the English-as-a-first language markets, and over the last 15 months weve entered into China and India – the second biggest and one of the fastest-growing markets in the world, respectively,” said Ivey. “Our expansion into EMEA represents the next piece in MiQ’s global story. We’ve already got a business unit in Germany and now we want to turbocharge this growth, bringing our clients and agency partners with us on this journey to new markets.”

Over the last nine years, Sideras has risen through the ranks of the trading team to be MD of the UK business. His new challenge as EMEA COO will be to bring the UK and DE teams closer together, as well as serviing and growing the EMEA business effectively from new markets over the coming years.

“With the need to reach audiences online, lockdown has accelerated the pace of programmatic adoption,” said Sideras. “In a world of uncertainty, brands and agencies are even more conscious of investments, and what they want right now is clearly measurable and trackable ROI. By harnessing data in programmatic advertising, marketers can not only optimise campaigns to deliver the best results, but use this insight to tackle wider business challenges.”

Turner will lead MiQ’s UK business into a period of continued growth and opportunity. She joined MiQ from Agenda 21 over two years ago and has been pivotal in the evolution of MiQ’s product story, worked closely as a lead with MiQ’s data scientists, engineers, and analysits in Bengalura, and advanced its omnichannel and cookieless offering. With her move to UK MD, Turner will also take a leading role in MiQ’s commitment to diversity and inclusion and corporate social responsibility in the UK.

“As we all move towards a post-cookie world, advertisers need to look at new ways to plan and deliver campaigns without relying on cookie-level data,” commented Turner. “In my new role, I’m excited to spearhead this major shift, defining and launching a full suite of omnichannel programmatic and futureproofed solutions to deliver tangible results for key holding companies, independent agencies and brands alike. MiQ’s expertise is using data to drive insight and as we expand into new markets, our clients will gain access to even more insight that can drive more measurable business outcomes for their whole corporation – it’s an extremely interesting time for the industry.”

Impact makes host of hires and promotions
Partnership automation company Impact has made a number of new hires amid the continued expansion of its EMEA team.

Alex Springer has been promoted to Regional VP, EMEA Sales & Solutions Architects; James Bennie to Senior Director, Customer Success; Sam Crocker to Director, Mid-Market & SMB Sales; and Matthew Sheppard and Smita Pillai to Customer Success Director roles; while Bharat Siyani has been promoted to Director, Global HR; Alex Gordon to Associate, Channel Partnerships Development; and Ana Santos, Associate, Solutions Architect.

Clara Mantegazza and Dayo Ojo are hired in Business Development roles, whilst Patrick Chancelier joins as Account Executive, Strategic Enterprise.

“Our diverse and world-class team will be working with customers and partners across a range of markets at a time when brands are beginning to grasp the power of partnerships,” said Florian Gramshammer, MD EMEA at Impact. “By scaling and growing our team in this way we can better meet market demand for our Partnership Cloud technology and continue to innovate and optimise our offering.”

Nixon and Levy join Adnami
Ad platform Adnami has hired Kathryn Nixon as Publisher Partnerships Manager and Sam Levy as Commercial Activation Manager.

Nixon is tasked with looking after publisher relationships in the UK, growing the business by dipping into her extensive network. She will lead service activation, delivery and training with top tier publishers in the UK. Her most recent role was at PapayaMobile, where she worked across a number of projects including the launch of a new eCommerce platform as Business Consultant. Prior to this, Nixon held the position of Head of B2B at Encore Digital Media and managed multi-million-pound accounts at Reach PLC, having started her career in Account Management at City AM.

“I can’t wait to support publishers, agencies and brands in creating and delivering a better, more efficient advertising ecosystem,” said Nixon.

Levy will work with Adnami’s partners during the onboarding process; ensure campaigns exceed expectations; and focus on nurturing new accounts and growing existing relationships. She was most recently at Flashtalking, and has worked with a range of clients including P&G, Paddy Power, Visa, and Kia.

“Adnami is pioneering uniquely high impact campaigns, and I can’t wait to help more clients enjoy astonishing ad experiences and accelerated return on investment,” commented Levy.

Kyra looks to head up US sales
Kelsey Arnold has been appointed Head of US Sales at Gen Z-focused media company Kyra Media. She is responsible for creating activations, campaigns and initiatives for brands looking for creative ways to engage with Gen Z.

Most recently, Arnold served as director of brand partnerships at Apartment Therapy Media, working with leading food brands, CPG products, and major national retailers across platforms, including the Kitchn. Arnold previously led brand partnerships for various emerging players in the media landscape in both the B2B and B2C space, including Social Media Today. Her early career began at IBM on the sales and marketing team, supporting client relationship initiatives like the Women in Leadership program and CIO summits.

Four join Dept
Dept, a digital agency, has welcomed four female digital experts across marketing, project management, design, and user experience.

Lavinia Alexoiu has been named as a Senior UX Designer, joining after three years at Mancester’s Accenture Interactive, where she worked as Senior Product Designer and a UX Designer.

Ali Marler arrives as a Designer, arriving from The Drawing Room in Manchester with four years of experience working in creative agencies.

Senior Marketing Manager Alexandra Moorhouse worked for Manchester Central, I-COM and, most recently, MIDAS (Manchester’s Inward Investment Agency). She has eight years of experience in marketing and communications and will be responsible for delivering Dept’s sector-focused strategies and campaigns with core competencies in content creation and event management.

Dept has also welcomed Jo Warrilow into the role of Service Delivery Executive within its DOS (Digital Operations Services) team where she coordinates projects, manages resources and ensures the smooth running of day-to-day operations. Warrilows seven-year professional track record involves business support and project coordination for Mercer, WYG Group, and Breast Cancer Care.

“We’re delighted to welcome this talented group of women to Dept, especially on International Women’s Day. Women are having a massive, positive impact on the future of our industry and we’re seeing that right now, here at Dept,” said Melissa Hermitt, Operations Director at Dept UK.

Lycamobile names Turner as EVP
Phil Turner has joined mobile virtual network operator Lycamobile as Executive Vice President of Professional Channel Sales. He will play a crucial role in supporting Lycamobile’s expansion plans, taking on responsibility for the overall productivity and effectiveness of Lycamobile’s channel sales. He will work closely with key internal and external stakeholders to enhance existing revenue streams and develop new ones in national markets.

Turner joins Lycamobile with over 30 years’ experience and has implemented vital strategies at companies including Payzone, the Post Office, and Travelex. As Head of Retail Proposition at Payzone (part of Post Office), he was responsible for the delivery of a new commission and pricing structure, delivery of a business banking partnership with Cashplus, setting up a Retailer Forum, as well as introducing a new customer experience process to more than 12,500 retail locations and reducing transaction times by 30 per cent.

“We’re pleased to announce Phil’s appointment as our Executive Vice President of Professional Channel Sales,” said Navanit Narayan, Lycamobile’s Group Chief Operating Officer. “He brings with him not only experience, but an unparalleled knowledge, flair, and expertise for supporting and handling stakeholder relations.”

Humphries-French takes charge of marketing at Never.no
Never.no, an audience engagement platform, has named Alex Humphries-French as its Head of Marketing & Communications. He will support Never.no’s strategy in growing brand reach and strengthen industry partnerships with collaborative events throughout the year.

Humphries-French joins from Red Lorry Yellow Lorry, where he was a Senior Account Manager. He has previously worked for Rotolight as their PR & Marketing Lead, managed campaigns for Avid, and built personal brand for actors in film & TV.

“I’m excited to join Never.no during a time of innovation across the industry. We’re seeing huge changes in the way the audience is consuming content, as broadcast, digital, social and brand content providers look to create new ways to connect with a growing audience,” said Humphries-French. “I’m delighted to be leading the marketing and comms for a company that has a huge opportunity for growth, particularly with our audience engagement platform, Bee-On and the team’s first-rate industry expertise – I can’t wait to get stuck in and collaborate with established partners and clients, such as Vizrt, ITV, and Sky.”

Heap makes executive reshuffle
Effective 2 April, Ken Fine assumes the position of Chief Executive Officer at digital product analytics company Heap, as CEO and Co-founder Matin Movassate transitions into a full-time role as Chairman of the Board. Heap has expanded its product and engineering leadership bench as well, adding Rachel Obstler as VP of Product and David Fullerton as VP of Engineering.

“Heap is coming off a record year of growth executing against its product vision and has never been in a better position to accelerate into our next stage. A recognized leader who’s made a career out of driving company growth and pushing the envelope toward what’s next, Ken is the ideal person to take this company forward into its next decade. I couldn’t have found a more trusted advisor to lead Heap,” said Movassate.

“In a world where digital experiences are your product, digital product analytics are a critical tool for gathering data, surfacing powerful insights, and taking meaningful action on them,” added Fine. “I’m thrilled to continue to build on the amazing work Matin has already put in to advance this mission of putting product data in the hands of teams everywhere, and am elated that we’ll have Rachel and David helping grow our game-changing product.”

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Leo Burnett names Doskow CMO
Emily Doskow has been announced as Chief Marketing Officer at Publicis Groupe’s Leo Burnett. Reporting to North America CEO Andrew Swinand, she will drive Leo Burnetts business growth by drawing on the agencys creative firepower, now backed by Epsilons data assets, and allowing the agency to understand people at the individual level.

Doskow rejoins Leo Burnett, where she won Ad Age’s 2011 ‘Marketer of the Year’ and spent several years leading the Coca-Cola account team. Between her stints at Leo Burnett, Doskow spent three years at the helm of business development, architecting the teams and processes that led to significant global-scale wins, and helping build and market new capabilities to drive organic growth for Energy BBDO and helped build the business development practice for VSA Partners.

“Im incredibly proud to return to Leo Burnett, where my passion for driving agency growth really began,” said Doskow. “More than anyone, Burnetters know what it takes to be both timely and timeless—helping brands move at the speed of culture while also ensuring they stand the test of time. I couldnt be more excited about what this means for the future of our work with client partners.”

Pair of key hires made at R/GA
R/GA, IPG’s innovation consultancy, has brought in Ashish Prashar as Global Chief Marketing Officer and Rowena Vithlani as Executive Client Services Director at R/GA London.

Prashar, who begins the role on 2 March, will oversee the global marketing function for R/GA with responsibility for market strategy, brand, and corporate communications. He joins from Publicis Sapient with over 15 years of experience.

Prashar is also known for justice reform activism, having created programmes for incarcerated peoples following his own incarceration and campaigned for bail reform, the ending of solitary confinement, and the restoration of voting rights. He recently worked with the Vice-Chair of the Democratic National Committee for Joe Biden’s 2020 Presidential Election and previously served as a campaign Press Secretary for Boris Johnson in his Mayor of London days.

“I feel honoured to contribute my experience to an already dynamic legacy and I have a special place in my heart for those who use their creativity, technology, and their platform to drive social change,” said Prashar. “R/GA is that kind of modern company. Im looking forward to helping Sean and R/GA grow, build and execute the next generation of digital businesses using mission-driven innovation and technology to design better experiences for the human future while helping brands become better citizens of the world.”

Vithlani will be responsible for the leadership of R/GA Londons senior client relationships, growing the agency’s client services team and leading strategic partnerships to help clients navigate industry disruption.

Vithlani joins R/GA from AnalogFolk, where she held the role of Managing Partner. Here, she led the implementation of AnalogFolk’s marketing innovation capability and output, building and leading multi-disciplinary teams to create and deliver work for clients including The Coca-Cola Company, BT Group, and Unilever. Before that, she held roles at Sapient Razorfish, AKQA, and BBH London.

“After meeting Becs [Rebecca Bezzina], and the new leadership team she’s building, I was inspired by the direction the agency is moving. To be part of the journey of shaping the next chapter of success here is something that excites me.” said Vithlani. “Ive always been an advocate of delivering best in class service, not servility, and my vision for this role is to foster an innovative mindset and culture where the output is that the work can be the best it can be – with a sharp focus on relationships, commerciality and creative affinity.”

Havas appoints Bland to newly created role
Paul Bland has been hired by Havas Media Group as Head of Biddable Media. He will lead the 100-plus digital specialists in Havas Media Group’s UK and international teams, who will now come together under a new biddable team structure. He will set the strategic vision for all biddable channels, and work to deliver greater cross-channel agility to further drive client business performance, all fuelled by data and insights.

Bland joins from iProspect, where he spent nearly six years and was most recently Head of Performance Strategy within the agency’s leadership team, responsible for driving growth and innovation across digital and performance products and solutions, contributing to winning new business, and developing new partnerships with brands. He previously held positions at MediaCom and Equimedia.

“I’m absolutely thrilled to be leading Havas Media Group’s biddable operation and can’t wait to get started on a mission to make digital and biddable the most meaningful media for brands,” said Bland. “This move comes at a genuine pivot point for media, with shifting consumer behaviours and expectations driven by tectonic change, leading to far more direct connection between people and brands.

“It’s an incredibly exciting time to be leading the new biddable team, as we partner closely with clients, innovating to drive tangible business results.”

Laycock elevated to CEO at Incubeta
Incubeta, an independent digital marketing services group, has promoted Sally Laycock to UK Chief Executive Officer. She will be tasked with continuing to drive Incubeta’s growth trajectory through the innovation of services and products and will also join the global Incubeta steering committee.

Laycock joined Incubeta in 2008 as Financial Controller and became Chief Financial Officer UK and US in 2017 overseeing all financial and business operations.

“Luke [Judge] has been instrumental to the success of Incubeta in the UK and the US. Not only has he been an outstanding leader and CEO, he is also an incredible colleague, friend and a truly amazing and humble person. Having worked side by side with Luke for many years, I have certainly learnt from the best and I am honoured the baton has been passed on to me,” commented Laycock.

“I want to ensure we carry forward the legacy of a strong people culture which has been built up over the years with a particular focus on creating an environment where people feel comfortable to be themselves at work. This is something I am absolutely passionate about. Over the past 13 years I have watched employees at Incubeta thrive and progress. I’m so proud of what we have all achieved together and I am excited to be at the helm to ensure this continues.”

Vodafone adds Swantee to board
Olaf Swantee will be appointed as a Non-executive Director following Vodafone Group’s annual general meeting on 27 July 2021, subject to shareholder approval. He will also become a member of Vodafone’s Audit & Risk Committee.

Swantee was CEO of Sunrise Communications between 2016 and 2020, transforming the company’s brand, network, and services to establish it as true challenger to Swisscom. Prior to that, he was CEO of EE, where he successfully merged Orange UK and T-Mobile under BT Group. He has also held senior positions at France Telecom (now Orange Group), Hewlett-Packard, Compaq Computer, and Digital Equipment.

“It is an honour to be invited to the Board of Vodafone, Europe and Africa’s leading telecommunications company,” Swantee commented. “I am greatly looking forward to working with Jean-Francois [van Boxmeer] and the board to support Nick [Read] and the executive team successfully drive forward the strategy.”

Rizwani hired to direct strategy at Tribal Health
Tribal Health, a division of DDB Worldwide’s Tribal Worldwide, has recruited Niaz Rizwani as its new Strategy Director. He will support Tribal Health’s clients across multiple activities notably – connecting a client’s commercial goals with interactive customer experiences, shaping data strategies and omnichannel planning, knowledge sharing, and delivering innovative approaches.

Rizwani joins from Publicis Health, where he was a Senior Strategist. Before that, he worked in strategy and innovation projects at DigitasLBi and Blue Latitude.

“This is a fascinating time to be involved in healthcare and I’m delighted to join Tribal Health as Strategy Director,” said Rizwani. “There is so much change in the world, and the way healthcare companies are digitally interacting with their customers is fundamentally and rapidly evolving. I’m looking forward to working with our clients to help them deliver meaningful change to their customers and business.”

4A’s welcomes new board members
Vita M. Harris, Kate MacNevin, and Megan Pagliuca have taken seats on the Board of Directors as Directors at Large at the American Association of Advertising Agencies (4A’s).

Harris, Chief Strategy Officer at FCB Global, is dedicated to helping drive agency and client success, as well as cultivating new business opportunities.

MacNevin leads MRM as Global Chairwoman & CEO, where she has sought to reinvent how agencies serve their clients, employees, and communities.

Pagliuca, Chief Activation Officer for Omnicom Media Group North America, leverages the Omnicom network’s vast data resources to advance more customer-centric and data-driven investment strategies.

“The challenges of the last year have reaffirmed the pivotal role the 4As plays in guiding our member agencies and helping them thrive during these uncertain times,” said Marla Kaplowitz, President & CEO of the 4A’s. “As we continue to support the needs and ambitions of our members in 2021, I am thrilled to welcome such a wonderful group of leaders to our Board of Directors who will partner alongside our leadership team to further identify opportunities to support members and advance the industry.”

Senior ad industry players signed by Admix
In-game ad company Admix has appointed Nigel Morris to its Board and enlisted Rob Norman as a Senior Advisor.

Morris, who is already an Admix advisor and investor, will work closely with the leadership team. He was a central figure at Dentsu Aegis Network for over 25 years, founding Isobar and transforming the US Group. He is currently Chair of The Upside, on the Board at Gyana, and a Non-executive Director at Guardian Media Group.

“The video gaming domain will be the next big media channel following social media’s emergence some 15 years ago. In-Play is intrinsically engaging to audiences and brand safe for marketers at scale, and will become a key driver of sustainable growth strategies for brands,” said Morris. “The Admix team is very conscious of the whole ecosystem for consumers, brands and publishers, and we have developed a pioneering and agile platform that provides a great experience and performance for all.”

Norman will focus on the Americas, acting as an advisor to Admix’s US team. He was a long time CDO of WPP’s GroupM and additionally served as its North American CEO. He is also a Director at Simpli.fi, Director at Piano, and Non-executive Director at BBC Global News.

“I am delighted to join Admix as an advisor. Gaming on personal devices has become a huge part of media consumption,” Norman commented. “In-Play advertising creates revenue for publishers and reach and engagement for advertisers. Admix unlocks the economic opportunity with programmatic speed and precision, and does so without compromising user experience.”

Remerge selects Eichmann as GM
Patrick Eichmann has been appointed General Manager of the Americas at mobile app retargeting company Remerge. Focusing on the US, Canada, and South America, he will head up strategy in region to build upon and drive the company’s growth in those markets.

Eichmann has been promoted from Vice President of Sales. Before Remerge, he was Director of Sales and New Business at Liftoff.

“App marketing is at a critical crossroads. At a time when Apple is ushering in changes to IDFA to empower user privacy, we are also seeing a surge in consumer demand for mobile gaming, shopping, food delivery and more. Remerge has been at the forefront of respecting privacy changes and building new products to allow apps to thrive in this new environment. I’m proud to be helping build Remerge into the leading mobile DSP in the Americas,” said Eichmann.

Gore promoted to CDO at Zeta
Zeta Global, a marketing tech company, has elevated Neej Gore to the position of Chief Data Officer. He will lead the Companys global data and analytics strategy, creating growth for brands by transforming data into actionable business insights, and continue the development of Zetas large identity graph, while driving further innovation within Zetas Opportunity Explorer.

Gore was previously Chief Business Officer at Boomtrain, which was acquired by Zeta four years ago. More recently, he was President of the Data Cloud division at Zeta.

“I am thrilled to continue advancing Zetas Data Cloud, which we have proudly grown to be one of the largest proprietary consumer data assets in the world,” said Gore. “Data literacy and insights have become essential for every enterprise business to connect with consumers at an individual level, and to do that successfully, they must have strong identity and intent based data solutions. I look forward to furthering our mission at Zeta to help marketers acquire, grow and retain customers and combat their toughest challenges.”

Sightly turns to Papp as CTO
Stefan Papp has been hired by Sightly, a media services and tech company, as its Chief Technology Officer. He will growth of the company’s technology and its Brand Mentality solution.

Papp joins Sightly after serving as the Senior Vice president for Deloitte Digital. Previously, he was the CTO at Blab. He also held leadership positions at technology companies including AdReady, Intelligent Effects, and Solutions IQ.

“In todays turbulent world where information and events happen at an unprecedented pace, Sightlys technology is fundamentally transforming the way that marketers react and plan,” said Papp. “Our Brand Mentality methodology taps into the fire-hose of public discourse, leveraging advanced technologies, to provide brands with the unique and extremely necessary capability to act on real-time insights at speed, while trends still resonate.”

Four countries get new leadership at Lycamobile
Mobile virtual network operator Lycamobile has appointed new country managers in Australia, France, Russia, and Romania.

Brendan Feeney takes up leadership in Australia. Boasting over 20 years’ experience in the telecom sector, he previously created brand awareness and converted momentum into customer growth at Optus.

Mikis de Bonneval takes up the France gig. In his more recent position at Lebara France, he oversaw a significant organisational reshuffle leading the firm back into profitability.

Mikhail Alilekov is now Russia Country Manager at Lycamobile after over 15 years working for telecoms firm including VimpelCom and MTT.

Finally, Mihai Nica will lead the Romania business. Over the past 10 years, he has worked at telecom companies including Vodafone and Telekom Romania.

“We’re very pleased to welcome such an experienced group of country managers to the Lycamobile family,” said Navanit Narayan, Group Chief Operating Officer at Lycamobile. “Each of them brings the depth of experience needed to boost our growth at a national level. I look forward to the exceptional work these four will bring to their new roles and look forward to realising our shared priorities.”

Bounteous hires Wang to lead strategy
Oscar Wang has joined digital experience consultancy Bounteous as Senior Vice President of Strategy & Insights. She will lead a multi-faceted team to create insights-centric strategies that drive transformative digital experiences.

Wang joins Bounteous with 15 years of experience at Prophet. She was a founding member and a key driving force of Prophet’s global strategic consumer insight & analytics practice, leading client engagements, hiring and developing talent, cultivating culture, and creating and evolving intellectual property critical to Prophets overall human insights-driven integrated branding, marketing, and innovation offerings.

“We live in a time where the old business books are being re-written in front of our eyes. Companies big and small are moving with a heightened sense of urgency to adapt,” said Wang. “In this context, I believe there is no disruptive growth without disruptive insights. It will be a true honour and great responsibility to lead and serve Bounteous’ clients in this transitioning world.

“It requires a fundamentally collaborative mindset, an agile but disciplined approach, and a pragmatic, strategic, and human leadership style. Within the Bounteous leadership team, I have found a group of comrades working toward this cause. I am proud to join a like-minded organization with a tremendous foundation. The co-innovation opportunity is, in a word, bounteous.”

Bell and Nicholls join Momentum exec team
Growth consultancy Momentum has appointed Robert Bell as Group Chief Financial Officer and Will Nicholls as UK Managing Director.

Bell, whose appointment follows his sale of private equity-backed company Cawood Scientific, has a track record of leading organisations through periods of high growth and international expansion and will guide the group’s M&A strategy – with a particular focus on North America.

“I am excited to be joining the team at Momentum during such a significant time in the company’s development and growth and look forward to leveraging my experience as we drive the business forward,” said Bell.

Nicholls becomes MD after a year with the company – having previously held positions as MD at Alpha Century and Managing Partner at both BBH and Saatchi & Saatchi – and will drive business strategy and operations, with a focus on developing Momentum’s consulting capabilities and client base in EMEA.

“It’s an honour to take on the role of MD and I’m excited to lead the continued success of the business here in the European market,” said Nicholls. “During my time in the business I’ve seen huge demand from clients to solve their biggest challenge – how to bring teams together to drive growth.

“Our clients are looking for partners with real depth of expertise to drive business outcomes and flawless delivery. We have phenomenal track record in delivering both and enter 2021 in a strong position.”

Momentum has also bolstered its regional management teams with the appointments of James Mollard as Business Development Director and Jacqueline Gummer as Consulting Director.

Alight hires Carreau to head up direct sales
Jacqui Carreau has been appointed Head of Direct Sales at out-of-home media owner Alight Media. Reporting to Chief Revenue Officer Ged Glover, she will lead Alight’s growing direct sales team positioned across the UK.

Carreau previously spent nearly eight years at Clear Channel, holding roles such as Head of South and Area Sales Manager for the South West. Prior to that, she spent almost 12 years at Newsquest, focused on Somerset and Devon.

“Alight Media has really impressed me, both in terms of growth and ambition, but also in the way the team runs the business,” said Carreau. “I’m over the moon to join a company with a clear mission to make out-of-home work harder for advertisers of all shapes and sizes, with a real focus on supporting SMEs build back better. I can’t wait to get stuck in.”

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Docomo brings in Snoek as CPO
John Snoek has been hired as Chief Product Officer at Docomo Digital, NTT Docomo’s mobile commerce business. He will join the senior leadership team and be responsible for the entire product portfolio and development of new payment products and commercial launches.

Snoek has over 25 years of experience in digital product businesses. He joins from Payvision where, as CPO, he was responsible for product, operations, and data science, as well Acapture, which was recently acquired by ING Bank. Before that, he led global marketing and product at GlobalCollect, now part of Worldline. Snoek has also been a consultant to the Dutch government on eCommerce strategy.

“It is very exciting to join the Docomo Digital team at this point in their long history in payments,” said Snoek. “I especially look forward expanding our global payments platform with payment products, value-added services, and data driven solutions and of course to build out DOCOMO Digital’s leading direct carrier-billing proposition. At the heart of everything we do and create is an unbeatable customer experience.”

Michail-Clendinnen takes up CSO gig at Ozone
The Ozone Project, a digital advertising platform formed by some of the UK’s leading publishers, has appointed Dora Michail-Clendinnen to the newly-formed role of Chief Strategy Officer. Reporting to CEO Damon Reeve, she will also fulfil the position of Company Secretary, while being responsible for developing Ozone’s strategic priorities, deepening Ozone’s relationships with key stakeholders, and raising standards of governance as the business continues to grow.

Prior to this appointment, Michail-Clendinnen was advising Ozone on its strategic direction, drawing on her experience from her time as Managing Director of Digital at The Telegraph, one of Ozone’s founder publishers. Prior to joining The Telegraph, she held senior roles at Yahoo, most recently as Senior Director for Audience & Programmatic Solutions across EMEA.

“Having played a part in the creation and early development of Ozone whilst at The Telegraph, I am very excited to be joining a business that is so clearly focused on creating a fairer and more effective digital ecosystem,” said Michail-Clendinnen. “Ozone has a clear roadmap for future growth, one that truly benefits both advertisers and publishers, and I can’t wait to join the brilliant team on this incredible journey.”

Yext elevates Rudnitsky to president
David Rudnitsky has been promoted to President and Chief Revenue Officer at search listing company Yext. He was previously responsible for Yexts enterprise sales organisation for North America.

Rudnitsky has over 35 years of technology and cloud sales experience, having successfully led enterprise sales for a number of leading disruptive tech companies. Prior to Yext, he spent 12 years at Salesforce, scaling the enterprise sales team and helping to lead the company from $51m in revenue at IPO to nearly $6bn. Prior to Salesforce, he led enterprise sales teams at Ariba, Netscape, and Oracle.

“Yext is disrupting the search category and Dave has, quite literally, written the book on technology sales disruption,” said Howard Lerman, Founder and CEO of Yext. “Im thrilled to unify our global sales organization under his incredible leadership. His background and proven track record of success make him uniquely qualified to lead us into the next phase of growth and category disruption.”

Van Santen named CCO at Uberall
Uberall, a location marketing solution, has chosen Tijs van Santen as its new Chief Customer Officer. He will help further drive Uberalls company growth through an increased focus on creating more value for its customers, from small business owners to multinational corporations.

Van Santen joins Uberall after many years building and leading go-to-market teams for technology businesses, including HP, Forrester Research, Impact and Button. At Forrester, in his role as VP of Global Sales, he led a newly created global sales operation across the US, Europe and Asia for Forresters largest and most strategic enterprise accounts. At Impact, Van Santen oversaw the transition to a pure SaaS go-to-market strategy in his capacity as CRO.

“I am thrilled to be joining Uberall at such an exciting stage of their journey,” said Van Santen. “Customer value is Uberall’s North Star, and I am committed to building a unique, seamless and complete end-to-end journey for all our customers and enable them to create the best possible ‘Near Me’ Brand Experience for their business. Uberall has an incredibly well-established core, and I look forward to building on this to drive exciting change and help the company evolve and grow, all the while making a difference for our customers, partners, employees and shareholders.”

ClickThrough welcomes Gatenby and Macintyre
Nikki Gatenby has been appointed to the Board of Director at growth marketing agency ClickThrough Marketing, while Lindsay Macintyre has been assigned the role of Head of New Business.

Gatenby will be overseeing and advising on all areas of business development, particularly in line with developing ClickThrough’s cultural strategy to enhance the service the agency provides to clients.

“The level of innovation in the business is inspiring and I believe we can accelerate ClickThrough’s growth trajectory by investing in the team and making ClickThrough an exciting place to work,” said Gatenby. “The future thinking within the business presents significant advantage and with Ecommerce booming, I want to ensure clients benefit from the impressive expertise of ClickThrough’s people to go further, faster, in achieving their ambitions.”

Macintyre was appointed after a thorough process to identify a Head of New Business with the capability to transform ClickThrough’s approach to new business and identifying compatible brands specifically looking to grow through marketing.

“I am excited to be joining a strong, established business looking to take the steps to grow in the next digital age,” said Macintyre. “With the domination of networks and platforms, I think there’s a real market for an independent agency than can genuinely help clients. I’m looking forward to expanding ClickThrough’s reach and developing partnerships that showcase their core ability.”

Kulkarni to become CFO at Tech Mahindra
Digital transformation company Tech Mahindra has chosen Milind Kulkarni as its Chief Financial Officer, effective 2 April 2021. He will take over from current CFO Manoj Bhat, who will be moving to become Group CFO for M&MGroup.

Kulkarni has been associated with Tech Mahindra since 2002, holding key leadership positions, including being CFO until May 2018 and in his current role as a Senior Advisor for the company. 

“It’s been a pleasure working with Manoj over the years, and I wish him all the best in his new role as the M&M Group’s Chief Financial Officer,” said CP Gurnani, MD & CEO of Tech Mahindra. “He has been instrumental in spearheading the growth of the organization and I would like to thank him for his immense contributions to the finance function. I welcome Milind Kulkarni, who has worked with the company for over 19 years in multiple leadership roles including as CFO till May 2018, in his new role.”

Huel adds social expert Bartlett to board
Steven Bartlett, ex-CEO of Social Chain, has taken a seat on the Board of Directors at meal replacement brand Huel. He has thrown his weight behind the brand with a financial investment and will provide it with his social media expertise.

The position on Huel’s Board is Bartlett’s first external appointment since stepping down as CEO of Social Chain in 2020. Bartlett launched Social Chain back in 2014 after dropping out of university and built the company toward a market valuation above €200m when it was taken public in 2019.

“I’ve been a Huel customer for the last 4 years and I fell in love with the brand, it’s mission and Julian’s vision soon after. Huel isn’t just a category leading company, it’s a rare, great British success story – one with mindboggling potential,” Bartlett commented. “I’m bringing almost 10 years of experience in leading one of the world’s most advanced social media companies and working with many of the world’s biggest consumer brands to the board. My objective is to make Huel one of the world’s most innovative, creative and culturally significant consumer brands.”

Three senior appointments made at Lycamobile
Lycamobile, a mobile virtual network operator, has recruited Brigadier Anil Tandan as Chief Technology Officer, Mikah Martin-Cruz as Group Chief Marketing and Digital Officer, and Karl Booth as Chief Commercial Officer.

Tandan will be responsible for the Lycamobile’s network infrastructure and will support the wider technology arms of the business. He brings with him 50 years of telecoms and IT expertise from a career in the army and the private sector. He spent 30 years in the Indian Army’s Corps of Signals before retiring as a Brigadier to join India’s nascent mobile industry in 1998. In 2003, Tandan was appointed CTO at Idea Cellular, where he was responsible for growing the business from a regional 2G operator to a pan-Indian 4G operators until it joined Vodafone India to form Vodafone Idea.

Martin-Cruz has more than 25 years’ experience in consumer technology, commercial marketing and digital ecommerce. He has held senior positions at several telco and technology groups including BT, where he was part of the team responsible for rolling out high speed broadband in the UK. He went on to become Sony Consumer Electronics’ MD, CMO at Samsung, and subsequently CMO for Western Europe at Microsoft. Prior to joining Lycamobile, he was Executive Director, EMEA and APAC at Logitech.

Booth joins Lycamobile with over 20 years’ telecoms experience, having worked across the B2B and B2C sectors launching new products and implementing strategies to monetise them. In his most recent position, he served as Commercial Director of Conecto. He also spent 10 years at Vodafone, where he was Head of Business Development, responsible for building its market leading wholesale business.

“I’m delighted to welcome Anil, Mikah and Karl to the Lyca family, broadening our expertise within the business at this important time in our global development,” said Navanit Narayan, Group COO of Lycamobile. “Against the backdrop of the Covid-19 pandemic, it is critical that we continue to develop new products and services that meet the ever-changing needs of our valued customers. I look forward to working closely with all three of them to build upon our successes to date.”

Adverty makes changes to leadership
Tobias Knutsson has been promoted to Chief Executive Officer at in-game advertising platform Adverty, while Thorbjörn Warin has been appointed Chief Supply Officer, allowing Founder Niklas Bakos to focus on product strategy and development.

Knutsson is currently Chief Commercial Officer at Adverty, having previously been CCO at DadAds and CEO at Strossle. As a result of his promotion, Bakos will now be able to focus on key areas within product strategy and development, as the company readies itself for further acceleration and expansion globally.

“Adverty is taking the next step in its journey towards unlocking previously unreachable audiences and comprehensive monetization streams,” Knutsson commented. “I am beyond excited and can’t wait for this next stage on our journey and taking the reins as CEO.”

Warin was previously VP of Publishing EMEA at AdColony, where he worked closely with game publishers in the region. He has also served as CMO at Grand Cru and Head of Marketing at Wooga. He will also benefit from the addition of Olga Kazanski to his team as Director of Business Development.

“I am excited to bring Adverty’s unique, seamless and unobtrusive ad offering to more game developers across the globe and help both smaller and larger publishers maximize their ad monetisation,” said Warin. “Gaming is slowly becoming the next big thing for brands – Verizon is set to create a virtual Super Bowl stadium in Fortnite this year – and game developers have used traditional ad solutions for years already. Now we just need to connect the dots and introduce them to the new way of monetizing through brand advertising.”

Phipps takes editing lead at Waste
Independent creative agency Waste has recruited Brett Phipps as its Senior Editor. He will build a newsroom function in order to help clients better understand and react to conversations about their brands online, with an initial focus on the Supercell account. The new function will enable brands to spot and act on real-time opportunities to join the conversations that matter to their target audiences.

Phipps joins from We Are Social, where he spent nearly three years as Senior Editor, leading the social media editorial vision for two of Activision’s biggest gaming franchises, Call of Duty and Destiny, across 12 international markets. He was previously the Games and SEO Editor at Trusted Reviews and has also held positions at The Independent and Pro-G Media.

“I’m incredibly excited to be joining Waste, a company with a fantastic client list with a huge passion for gaming. The work the team has delivered over the past year has been nothing short of inspiring, and something I knew I had to be involved with,” said Phipps.

“I hope that my experience within the games industry, coupled with my passion for community building and social listening, will be an asset to the team. I cannot wait to get started.”

TMWI selects Morgan as MD
Matt Morgan has joined marketing agency TMWI as Managing Director. He will lead client services and planning and strategy whilst growing the agency’s team and client base and focusing on product and capabilities development.

Morgan has over 20 years’ experience in media, across agencies, broadcast and ad technology. Previously Managing Partner, Head of Product, at Dentsu Aegis Network, he was also Managing Partner, Digital at IPG and worked at Blis. He has worked across global brand accounts including Amex, Apple, Sony, Johnson & Johnson, The Economist, and Spotify.

“I am excited to see what TMWI’s agile team can deliver,” commented Morgan. “Its track record of delivering impactful results in a fast-moving landscape, and across sectors, is incredibly inspiring. With this team, so passionate about media, working alongside me, I know we will achieve great things and exceed our targets.”

In addition to Morgan’s appointment, Jordan Muckley has joined TMWI as Social Media Lead, Nazanin Faghihi takes on the role of Senior Paid Media Executive, Cherish Goodwin arrives as Content Lead, and Josh Burlison has been named Paid Search Executive.

Ernst named CEO of Tubular
Tubular Labs, a social video analytics provider, has chosen Scott Ernst as its new Chief Executive Officer, effective 16 February 2021.

Ernst has a proven track record of scaling marketing insights businesses globally. He most recently served as CEO of Macromill, for which he was recruited by Bain Capital to focus the business around global and digital solutions. He was also a founding management team member at Compete, where he drove the go-to-market strategy resulting in the acquisition by WPP’s Kantar. He would then, in turn, help transform compete into what is now Millward Brown Digital.

“I’m impressed by Tubular’s ascent since its founding in 2012, and I believe the company has all the elements required to be a global measurement authority,” said Ernst. “Tubular provides the only enterprise SaaS platform of addressing the pain points of media companies and advertisers who seek to confidently transact in the digital video marketplace,” added Ernst. “Brands in particular need to understand the reach and audience quality of what they’re buying. I believe Tubular’s audience ratings product is the catalyst for brands to increase digital video investments.”

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