Kristiaan Kroon Confirmed CEO, Mark Jarrett COO of Omnicom Media Australia
Kristiaan Kroon has been named CEO of Omnicom Media in Australia, with former PHD CEO Mark Jarrett moving into the COO role.
The appointments come amid a slew of leadership announcements following global structural changes to Omnicom as the holding company begins to operationalise its acquisition of IPG.
The Omnicom Media top job has remained vacant since the departure of Peter Horgan in March, though Kristiaan has led the business during the period as COO. He has also made several key hires including CFO Donna Bartlett, who has acted in the role for six months.
The COO role will now be occupied by Mark Jarrett, who has spent the last six of his nearly 10 years with PHD as its Australian CEO. Recently, he was confirmed to be leaving the post for a group-level role, with OMD co-CEO Laura Nice moving across to stablemate PHD, leaving Sian Whitnall to solely run OMD.
Earlier this week, IPG MediaBrands APAC CEO Leigh Terry and IPG MediaBrands Australia CEO Mark Coad exited the business as a result of the structural changes brought about by the merger, along with Magna MD Lucy Formosa Morgan.
Initiative CEO, Jo McAlister, and UM CEO, Anathea Ruys, will join Omnicom Media’s leadership group locally, though Omnicom has yet to determine the fate of IPG MediaBrands Australian COO, Geoff Clarke.
Managing director of WPP’s EssenceMediacom Australia, Stephanie Douglas-Neal, has also joined the business. Although her role has not been officially revealed, she is expected to move into Hearts & Science as CEO following Jane Stanley's exit earlier this year.
Prior to her three years with EssenceMediacom, Stephanie spent seven years at PHD, finishing as MD.
This week, Omnicom Oceania CEO Nick Garrett confirmed the region’s six media agency brands will continue to operate independently post-IPG merger: OMD, PHD, UM, Initiative, Hearts & Science, Mediahub, and, globally, Axciom.
Globally, the business has sunset creative agency brands DDB, FCB, and MullenLowe. In Australia, DDB will be folded into Clemenger BBDO, run by DDB's local bosses and new Clemenger co-CEOs Sheryl Marjoram and Mike Napolitano.
DDB and FCB will merge in New Zealand to create McCann New Zealand, run by Priya Patel and Paul Wilson. In Wellington, New Zealand, Clemenger Wellington and FCB Wellington will be merged to become McCann Wellington, operating as part of McCann Group NZ. Local leadership for McCann Wellington will be announced soon.
Attivo Group-owned 303 MullenLowe has rebranded to 303 in Australia, its original name, in what the agency said marks a return to its "independent roots" following the retirement of the ‘MullenLowe’ brand.
