Movers & Shakers: BBH NY, Adglow, Dentsu Aegis, Twitter and Greenlight Digital

The mobile marketing industry is ever-change, and that applies to the people as much as the technology. Movers & Shakers is a regular feature following the hottest hires in the industry, so you can keep track of who’s joined which company, and what they’re doing there.

(Left to right) Sarah Watson, Anthony Romano, Gerard Caputo, Glen Blake, Nigel Morris, Candi Castleberry-Singleton, Andreas Pouros


BBH New York Renews Leadership Team with new CEO, CCO and Chairwoman

Publicis Groupe agency BBH has announced sweeping changes to its New York office leadership team, following the departure last year of its North American CEO and chief creative officer. Global CEO Neil Munn named Anthony Romano, formerly of R/GA, to serve as the new chief executive officer.

“Our new BBH NY executive team is well positioned to continue our strong momentum,” said Munn. “Anthony’s combination of experience from the agency, media and client sides of the business gives him a unique 360-degree perspective. His progressive leadership style combined with his versatile marketing experience and his deep appreciation for the work make him the idea candidate to lead the BBH NY team and expand our business in North America.”

Romano, who will officially join the firm net month, most recently worked as US senior vice president and head of client services at R/GA. He has also held other agency roles at Publicis and Ogilvy, as well as internal marketing roles at Gap and Polo Ralph Lauren, and serving as global head of agency development at AOL.

In addition to Romano’s appointment, executive creative director Gerard Caputo was promoted to chief creative officer, while Sarah Watson was named as chairwoman, while also retaining her role as global chief strategy officer. Caputo, who joined BBH four years ago, has held creative director and executive creative director roles at BBDO, Fallon, CP+B and Ogilvy. Watson is a 14-year veteran of BBH, having joined as head of international planning in 2001, left to serve as head of planning at DDB UK in 2009, and returned in 2011 as BBH New York’s chief strategy officer.

Glen Blake Joins Adglow as Vice President of Sales
Social advertising specialists Adglow have named Glen Blake as the firm’s new UK vice president of sales. Blake joins the team from Madison Logic, and will focus on establishing and growing revenues for the group within the UK, working closely with senior management to identify opportunities for growth and promoting sales excellence in the local team.

Blake began his career in sales at Ziff Davis publishing, and went on to manage the commercial aspects of a number of specialist digital properties. Moving into the world of performance marketing, affiliate, native advertising and video, he was a senior member of the international team at Tradedoubler before running the UK division of Preview Networks. More recently, Blake was part of the UK business development team at Outbrain.

“Adglow is in a really exciting phase of growth following its formation last year,” said Blake. “This is a fantastic opportunity for me to work with a smart and talented team led by Damian Routley, an inspirational leader, and to play a significant role in further cementing the Adglow offering for its current and future clients. The group has real expertise in helping brands and agencies to maximise the potential of their paid social activity across multiple channels and I’m looking forward to being a part of their ongoing success.”

Dentsu Aegis Network Strengthens Digital with Two Appointments
In a move aimed at furthering the firm’s progress towards its goal of being a 100 per cent digital economy business by 2020, Dentsu Aegis Network has added two new members to its top leadership team. Nick Brien, most recently global CEO of iCrossing and president of Hearst Magazines, joins as CEO of DAN Americas, while Nigel Morris is promoted to the newly created role of chief strategy and innovation officer for the Network.

Brien brings with him over 30 years’ industry experience in a number of leading global roles, including CEO of McCann Worldgroup. He will officially join the firm on 1 August, and will be based in the company’s New York offices. Morris, who has previously served as CEO of both DAN Americas and DAN EMEA, will lead the entire firm’s tech-driven transformation, planning its innovation agenda and building strategies, services and products to equip clients for the digital economy.

“The growth of the digital economy is one of the few certainties in an uncertain world, and realising our ambition to be a 100 per cent digital economy business by 2020 requires the strongest top management team from the industry, globally,” said Jerry Buhlmanm, CEO of Dentsu Aegis Network. “Nick is a proven, high energy leader who will further accelerate the growth of our business in the Americas [and] Nigel Morris has been a true pioneer of the digital economy; combined with his innovative approach and proven leadership, we will accelerate the impact of innovation for our clients.”

Twitter Aims to Improve Diversity with Candi Castleberry-Singleton
Candi Castleberry-Singleton, former chief inclusion officer at hospital network UPMC, has been revealed as Twitter’s new vice president of inclusion and diversity, as the social network attempts to better represent its userbase demographics in its leadership team.

Castleberry-Singleton replaces Jeffrey Siminoff, who stood down in February following widespread criticism of Twitter’s appointment of a white man to a diversity-focused position. She has served similar roles at Motorola and Sun Microsystems, and most recently has been promoting the Dignity & Respect Campaign she developed at UPMC with other corporations.

“I’m so excited to join the team at Twitter to lead inclusion and diversity efforts for employees and the Twitter community,” said Castleberry-Singleton on Twitter, where her appointment was also announced by CEO Jack Dorsey. “I look forward to bringing what I’ve learned to Twitter.”

New CEO Named at Greenlight Digital
Andreas Pouros is taking on leadership duties at digital agency Greenlight Digital, replacing Warren Cowan as CEO. Cowan is taking on the position of executive chairman, and will continue to work closely with both the agency and its board of directors, where he’ll continue to hold a seat.

Pouros is a 16-year veteran of the agency, having co-founded it in 2001 and served as chief operating officer since day one. During his time at Greenlight, he has committed himself to developing, expanding and improving the services it offers, and delivering best-in-class results for its clients. As CEO, he plans to oversee a strategy that ensures the agency offers a fully integrated breadth of services and is run by the best teams in digital.

“My focus and commitment is anchored on steering Greenlight Digital to be the agency of the future,” said Pouros. “To be an agency which can deliver growth and transformation in a world where digital is fast becoming the norm for brands.”