BBH N.Y. Gets New Boss; Gallop To CMO

Hegarty recasts 6-year-old office because 'it still isn't the agency we want it to be'In its six years, Bartle Bogle Hegarty's New York office has grown from seven employees and one client to more than $300 million in billings and a staff of 120.Worldwide chairman John Hegarty grades that performance a 7 on a scale of 1 to 10. He wants it to be at least a 9, both creatively and from a business standpoint. In fact, by 2009 he expects New York to be bigger than the mothership in London. Toward that end, he has recast the top.Two weeks ago, BBH hired away Euro RSCG executive creative director Kevin Roddy, 44 [Adweek Online, Sept. 2], to fill a 6-month-old vacancy left by the exit of Kevin McKeon. And this week, BBH will name London co-managing director Gwyn Jones, 37, as CEO of New York to replace president Cindy Gallop as the day-to-day leader here. "I'm proud of what we have done, what we have achieved, but we feel it still isn't the agency we want it to be," said Hegarty, 60.Gallop, 44, is shifting to U.S. chairman and chief marketing officer, with select client and new-business responsibilities. But her main task will be to promote the BBH brand, Hegarty said. She will report to worldwide COO Simon Sherwood, as does Jones. "She's a fantastic advocate for the agency," Hegarty said of Gallop. "That's what we want her to do." Said Gallop: "We've grown way beyond our own expectations and saw the need to strengthen and broaden that leadership team." She added that as president, she was stretched so thin at times that it "prevented me from doing more of what I particularly enjoy"—namely, to "promote the brand holistically around the world." In London, Jones was part of a team that oversaw a period of enormous growth and creative success. In the past five years, billings have grown 64 percent to an estimated $640 million. "He has a fantastic brain," Hegarty said of Jones, whom he also described as a "great manager of people." As Jones sees it, the challenge is to provide "coherent leadership" and balance across disciplines. The Welshman developed a fondness for America while working on Levi's but hasn't worked in the U.S. before.Roddy, who met Jones during the interview process, calls BBH in London the "best agency on the planet." That's a key reason why he left Havas' Euro in New York after just one year. "When you get a call from John Hegarty, you take the call," said Roddy, who was first approached by Hegarty about three months ago. "BBH in New York has all the potential in the world. It's an incredible creative thoroughbred that maybe hasn't had all the right jockeys."

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BBH N.Y. Gets New Boss; Gallop To CMO

Andrew McMains

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