- Andrew McMains

NEW YORK Former DraftFCB worldwide group management director Niland Mortimer has joined Wunderman's San Francisco office in the new position of president.

Mortimer, 56, is taking the reins of the 20-person shop as it seeks to establish itself outside of the broader Young & Rubicam Brands group in that market. Penny Baldwin, president and CEO of Y&R San Francisco, previously oversaw the agency.

Wunderman San Francisco's largest client is Hewlett-Packard, and the agency plans to leverage several Wunderman digital acquisitions to further diversify its client base, according to a representative.

In the past two years, WPP Group's Wunderman has acquired shops such as Zaaz in Seattle and Blast Radius in Vancouver, both of which have operations in San Francisco.

At DraftFCB in New York, Mortimer worked on that agency's HP business. Before DraftFCB, he was a partner and global brand director at Havas' Euro RSCG in New York and in Paris, handling accounts such as Philips, Universal Studios, Schering-Plough and Danone.

"Niland is a uniquely talented individual," said Wunderman worldwide vice chairman David Sable, to whom Mortimer reports. "With years of hands-on b-to-b communications experience and a commitment to excellence, he also brings people together as a team."

Other Wunderman San Francisco clients include Align Technologies and Blue Shield of California.