Sheila Hartnett named CEO of JWT/OgilvyAction

Ogilvy & Mather North America and JWT North America, both part of WPP Group, have made some key changes to the executive management team of its joint venture agency, JWT/OgilvyAction.

 

JWT/OgilvyAction announced today that Sheila Hartnett, currently the CEO of OgilvyAction North America, has been named CEO of JWT/OgilvyAction, fully overseeing responsibilities initially shared with Fred Bidwell, who has retired to pursue personal interests. Mr. Bidwell was formerly the President of Malone Advertising, the retail marketing unit of JWT before the formation of JWT/OgilvyAction.

“Sheila has been an outstanding leader and unifier of the JWT/OgilvyAction joint venture and has brought together teams across the agency to build and drive client growth,” said David Eastman, CEO of JWT North America and John Seifert, Chairman & CEO of Ogilvy & Mather North America.  “The board of JWT/OgilvyAction is thrilled to have someone with Sheila’s experience at the helm of the leading fully integrated shopper marketing and experiential marketing company in the country.”

 

JWT/OgilvyAction was formed in 2010 to bring together the expertise of JWT’s shopper marketing company Malone Advertising with OgilvyAction’s experiential marketing capability to form the largest and most integrated offering in the space.  Also being promoted is Gail Kay, who has been appointed as the General Manager for JWT/OgilvyAction. Ms. Kay will be mainly responsible for building connectivity across the joint venture.  Previously she was the Executive Vice President of the JWT/OgilvyAction Akron, OH, office.

 

“For the past two years JWT/OgilvyAction has made great progress in building our business and demonstrating our strengths as the leading North American brand activation agency with the most complete capability to influence consumer, and shopper behavior at every point along the path to purchase,” said Hartnett. “We now look to better integrate the leadership, talent, and processes across the joint venture so we can continue to grow our business.”

 

Also reporting directly to Ms. Hartnett are Wai-Man Leung, CFO; Scott McCallum, President, Shopper Marketing; Pam Morrisroe, Managing Director, OgilvyAction East, EVP, Experiential Marketing; Ron Magliocco, Business Development Managing Director; and Ken Madden, EVP, Head of Digital.

“The behavior of shoppers continues to change, and we must evolve our strategies accordingly. These new organizational changes will help us to better serve our clients and continue to create excellent campaigns, while ensuring the stability of JWT/OgilvyAction,” Hartnett added.