Mich. Shop Tops Keiler, McCann; Ingalls Expects to Keep Recruitment
BOSTON–Following a lengthy review marked by potential conflicts and the departure of a key client executive, Raytheon Co. has awarded its $15 million ad account to Campbell-Ewald in Warren, Mich.
Keiler & Co. in Farmington, Conn., and McCann-Erickson in Los Angeles were the finalists in a competition run by Pile and Co., the management consulting firm in Boston.
Incumbent Ingalls in Boston did not participate but is expected to retain some Raytheon assignments, including global recruitment chores, which it shares with Bernard Hodes Advertising in New York.
Campbell-Ewald was tapped to create and place corporate campaigns as well as ads for Raytheon’s various divisions, including defense and consumer electronics, said Pile and Co. president Skip Pile. Compensation issues were being hammered out at press time last week, said Pile, who referred other queries to officials at the Lexington, Mass.-based client.
Campbell-Ewald “did an excellent job demonstrating they can do a good job,” said vice president of corporate affairs and communications Phyllis Piano, who joined Raytheon a few weeks ago from Cooper Industries in Houston. She declined to elaborate. Executives at Campbell-Ewald did not return calls seeking comment.
It was the agency’s mix of automotive, aviation and industrial experience with clients such as Ameritech, Continental Airlines and General Motors’ Chevrolet and AC Delco divisions that helped put it over the top, according to sources.
Raytheon’s recent growth, including its absorption of the defense systems units of GM’s Hughes Electronics and Texas Instruments, prompted the search for an agency to develop a global brand image across all product lines, Raytheon officials said when the review began [Adweek, Nov. 16].
The selection of finalists raised eyebrows, with potential conflicts looming on both McCann’s and Keiler’s roster in the form of McDonnell-Douglas and Fairchild-Dornier, respectively.
The conflict issue, combined with the year-end departure of Barry French, Raytheon’s director of global corporate affairs and communications, prompted speculation that the review would stall.
Claiming all conflict issues had been cleared with all parties involved, the client vowed to press on with the search, which concluded last week.
With French now gone, Piano will serve as Raytheon’s main contact with Campbell-Ewald.
–with Tanya Gazdik
Raytheon Rewards Campbell-Ewald
