Wunderman

In a Trio of Moves, Wunderman Intensifies Play for Global Agency Network Dominance

Aussie Interactive Expert Tapped as UK CEO
First Wunderman CMO Named; Chief Client Officer Appointed

New York and London, Nov. 26, 2007—Wunderman chairman and CEO Daniel Morel announced three important appointments that set the stage for a fiercely competitive year ahead.

• Australian interactive expert, and former CEO of Euro RSCG in Sydney, Brendan Tansey will join Wunderman as CEO of Wunderman in the UK early next year.
• Trish Wheaton, who has been on assignment as COO of Wunderman in the UK takes on the new role as Wunderman’s first chief marketing officer.
• Stewart Pearson named chief client officer, serving as global client lead for Nokia. He also is responsible for on-boarding newly acquired companies.

Tansey to Take the Reigns in UK

After a five month search, Brendan Tansey, an interactive expert who spent the past 12 years at Euro RSCG in Australia, the last two as its CEO, will become CEO of Wunderman in the UK, the largest data, digital and relationship marketing agency there. He will take over from Trish Wheaton, who has been on assignment in London since March, serving as the UK’s interim COO.

Aussie-born Tansey, who feels at home in London, will join Wunderman early next year after he relocates his family from their Australian home. He will report to Wunderman CEO of Europe, Middle East/Africa, Marcus Starke.

Morel said “Tansey’s experience is diverse, global and most important, digital. He brings the perfect blend of management, international and e-commerce experience to our UK operation. What is especially appealing about Brendan’s experience is how he merged a separate Direct and Sales promotion agency into existing direct and digital agencies.”

Starke added “Brendan’s success in Sydney will be especially beneficial to us in London, as our UK agency continues to evolve following its transformation into the largest data, digital and relationship marketing agency in the UK this summer.”

Tansey is no stranger to London and Europe. Before running Euro in Australia, he spent five years in Paris and London as European director of digital agencies. In that role, he was responsible for strategic direction, contract negotiations, new business development, cross agency resource management. He started his career at Ogilvy.

So what attracted this Aussie to move his family to London? Tansey said “I was born in Australia but always considered London home. The opportunity to work in London, for Wunderman, one of the largest agency networks committed to digital excellence, was too good to pass up!”

Trish Wheaton Named Wunderman CMO

In a related move, Trish Wheaton concludes her assignment in the UK and returns to North America as the Wunderman’s first chief marketing officer, responsible for new business and brand stewardship. Wheaton will be based in Toronto and maintains her position as chairperson of Wunderman Canada. As CMO, Wheaton reports to Wunderman vice chairman/COO David Sable.

“Trish’s challenge is formidable,” Sable said. “We’ve asked her to find Wunderman’s next large multinational account like Microsoft. However, there is no one better qualified, more determined or more tenacious than she is. Trish will put the entire Wunderman network, and our ties to WPP, to work to cultivate business leads and turn them into profitable global accounts.”

Wheaton also will serve as Wunderman’s Brand steward and as responsibility for the network-wide launch of Wunderman: the Next 50 Years, an initiative born to commemorate our 50-year milestone in 2008 and propel the agency well into the future.

Wheaton takes on this challenge after much success as UK’s COO following her arrival there in March for Team Microsoft. She oversaw the transformation of Wunderman in the UK, which combined the creative forces of HTW with Wunderman Automotive—creating the largest data, digital and relationship marketing agency in the UK. Wunderman UK has been on a roll the second half of this year, winning two significant pieces of new business, Orange and Land Rover CRM and hiring some game changing creative talent.

Stewart Pearson Appointed Chief Client Officer

To round out the moves, Wunderman appointed Stewart Pearson chief client officer responsible for two broad areas: delivering the best of the network’s data, digital and direct expertise to key clients and on-boarding our newly acquired agencies. Pearson is based in Seattle and reports to Morel.

In his new role, Pearson serves as global client lead for key global accounts including Nokia and will drive business in San Francisco and Irvine by tapping the full depth of network resources. In addition, Pearson is responsible for bringing the agency’s newest partners up to speed on resources throughout the Wunderman network, including Blast Radius, which was acquired last month.

“With Trish focused on new business and Stewart focused on high potential clients and acquisitions, we have the best chance of success for business expansion,” Morel added. “What this means for our clients and prospects is that there is a person who has a broad view of how we can solve their marketing challenges using the entire service offering of both the Wunderman network and our affiliations throughout WPP,” he said.