Clients See Business in Good Hands as Katz Leaves BBDO

Bill Katz’s climb through the ranks of BBDO’s flagship office since 1981 mirrored the success of the clients he was close to, including Pepsi and Visa. Last week, however, while those two companies expressed admiration for Katz, neither seemed overly perturbed by his exit.

“Bill helped shape some of Pepsi’s greatest ad campaigns over the years,” Dave Burwick, chief marketing officer of Pepsi-Cola North America, said last week. “After moving to a larger role running BBDO’s New York office, he left our business in very capable hands.”

Becky Saeger, evp of brand marketing for Visa, an account that has been at the Omnicom Group agency since 1985, said last week, “Bill’s been there through thick and thin with Visa, and we’ll miss him.