- David Gianatasio

BOSTON Havas' Euro RSCG today appointed Ron Berger and Ron Bess executive chairman and COO for the network's North American operations, respectively.

They join Esther Lee, N.A. CEO and president of global brands, as the organization's leadership team. 

Berger had been CEO of Euro RSCG's offices in New York and San Francisco. Despite his new title, he will retain oversight for key clients such as Jaguar, Charles Schwab and ExxonMobil, all of which were added during Berger's tenure at the helm.

Moving forward, Alan Burgis will serve as CEO of Euro RSCG in S.F., while Jeff Brooks and Andrew Benett run N.Y. operations as co-presidents.

Bess' new title comes in addition to serving as CEO and president of the outpost in Chicago.

All told, the shop's North American operations employ 3,000 staffers and also include Euro RSCG offices in Dallas and Toronto, as well as the Abernathy MacGregor Group communications firm and Euro RSCG DRTV, a direct-response unit.

"With these newly created North America positions, we now have the opportunity to more strategically leverage and integrate our range of marketing capabilities across North America to create new and better solutions for our clients. Co-creation across the spectrum creates a brand amplification effect -- I like to think of it as one plus one equals five," said Lee, in a statement.

David Jones, global CEO of Euro RSCG added, "We've had a huge amount of success in the last 18 months and these appointments give us an incredibly strong team to lead us into our next growth phase."

Said Berger: "With all of the important and significant changes taking place in our industry today, one thing hasn't changed: clients want and need smart people who are ruthlessly dedicated to understanding and helping to grow their businesses. My goal as chairman is to ensure that we deliver that."

In its earnings statement in February, parent Havas noted that Euro RSCG's 5.5 percent revenue increase in 2007 helped boost the parent company's overall global revenue 4 percent. The agency got off to good start in 2008: the New York office added lead creative chores on the $225 million LendingTree account (from IPG's Mullen) and the Chicago unit was competing in Burlington Coat Factory's $60 million review but got cut before the final round.