Gideon Spanier
Oct 5, 2018

WPP names Pretorius chief technology officer and Pattison chief client officer

Mark Read has also detailed the responsibilities of Andrew Scott, who was named chief operating officer in September.

L-R: Pattison, Pretorius
L-R: Pattison, Pretorius

WPP chief executive Mark Read is building his senior team by making a series of appointments.

Stephan Pretorius, Wunderman's UK group chief executive and global chief technology officer, is to become WPP's chief technology officer, a newly created position. And Lindsay Pattison, chief transformation officer at WPP and GroupM, is promoted to the new role of WPP chief client officer, with responsibility for global client leaders and getting different parts of the group working together on big accounts.

Pretorius joined WPP in 2016 as a result of Wunderman, then led by Read, acquiring his business Acceleration. Pretorius was initially Wunderman's chief technology officer before expanding his remit to include the whole group as well as taking on the role of UK chief executive. 

His appointment is significant because Read has previously said he wants WPP to "get closer to technology partners like Adobe, Facebook, Google, Microsoft and others".

Pretorius’ role will include ensuring WPP has a consistent technology and data strategy and to deal with clients on tech issues.

Read has also laid out the details of Andrew Scott’s new position as chief operating officer, following his appointment in September.

Scott will be in charge of WPP’s operating structure, M&A and rationalising the business.

WPP is under pressure to simplify the group and Read has already made a significant move by merging creative network Y&R with digital agency VML to form VMLY&R.

Read is holding a global strategy meeting for WPP leaders in Brooklyn, New York, next week.

 
Source:
Campaign UK

Related Articles

Just Published

1 day ago

Creative Minds: Gian Nealega is a believer in the ...

Grit, determination, persistence and a whole lot of creativity has helped Dentsu Creative Philippines Gian Nealega shift lanes from training to be a nurse to becoming a creative leader.

1 day ago

Women to Watch 2024: Shilpa Sinha, McCann Worldgroup

Sinha’s strategic leadership at McCann Worldgroup unites cultural insight with creative impact. She also advocates for inclusive representation across regional and global work.

1 day ago

M&A deals continued to decline in 2024: COMVergence

Even as overall dealmaking declines, certain sectors such as ecommerce continue to be a major draw.