Exclusive: Wunderman Thompson Hires Omnicom Veteran as New York CEO

Wunderman Thompson has hired a new chief executive for its New York office, as it unites its health practice with the rest of the agency. Audrey Melofchik joins the WPP agency next month as CEO, responsible for overseeing all of Wunderman Thompson's operations in New York, including Wunderman Thompson Health. Melofchik officially arrives in the role on May 10, reporting to North America CEO Shane Atchison. "Audrey’s experience and smarts are exactly what we need to fuel new growth in one of our key markets. The move continues the global playbook we've been following in establishing strong central leadership in our biggest offices across the globe," Atchison said in a statement. Melofchik will also support CEO Becky Chidester at Wunderman Thompson Health to capitalize on an important moment for the health space. "We have an ambitious vision for the New York office and for Health," Chidester said in a statement. "Bringing together Audrey’s leadership and consumer health experience with the deep expertise we have across health and life sciences in the New York office will be dynamite." A homecoming A longtime Omnicom network veteran, Melofchik most recently served as president of both DDB New York and Velocity, Omnicom’s dedicated unit for Johnson & Johnson. Since being named to a dual role as DDB New York president while retaining leadership of Velocity in 2019, Melofchick has helped the agency bring in clients including Aflac, Kroger, Merck and Uber. She previously led the global HP account at BBDO, overseeing clients across ten Omnicom agencies. She led the New York office while also serving as chief client officer for Omnicom digital agency Organic. "We've worked hard to rebuild DDB and I'm really proud of what we accomplished," Melofchik told Adweek. "I do feel like I'm going back home because before Omnicom, I was at JWT and [I'm now returning to] a new version of it. I met great people and had a wonderful experience at Omnicom across three different agencies and take all of that with me." Melofchik spent seven years at JWT before leaving for Organic, serving as business director prior to her departure. As JWT Merges With Wunderman, What’s Next for WPP? Bringing the orchestra together As an interdisciplinary agency within advertising's largest network, Wunderman Thompson has all the components a conductor could ask for. "Wunderman Thompson has everything from CX and CRM and commerce capabilities, at a time when we most need expertise in commerce, but also had a spot in the Super Bowl. To have all of those capabilities in-house is just where the industry is going and it's hard to find another spot like that," Melofchik told Adweek. "The thing I'm most excited about is bringing that orchestra together," she added, "finding a way to drive creativity through all of that." The addition of the agency's health practice presents even further opportunities for synergy. News of the unification comes as WPP sister agency Grey, which also has a health unit integrated into the agency, hired Tim Jones as CCO for its pharmaceutical practice. "It's the fastest growing part of the industry," Melofchik said. "It's been really important to Wunderman Thompson. Becky has done a tremendous job building up that business." Melofchik explained that she was mindful that employees needed to be reassured of stability amid yet another change at the agency, following changes brought about by the merger of JWT and Wunderman to create Wunderman Thompson beginning in late 2018. "There's been a lot of change and bringing Wunderman Thompson New York and the Health team together is more of that," she said. "What I've talked about so far is listening to start and then aligning behind a plan and executing quickly." Nascent opportunity Once integrated, Melofchik said her expectation is for the New York and Health organizations to function as one team, providing the flexibility for talent to move from health to consumer assignments, while also valuing specialists in the health practice. "It’s about giving people opportunity and inspiring them," she said. "People need to find their own road." To successfully build up its health practice, Wunderman Thompson will need to attract plenty of new talent to the space. "It's my job to make sure we attract the best talent and we do that if we create a culture where people feel inspired, feel they know what it takes to be successful and that they can bring their whole selves to work," Melofchik said. Melofchik sees plenty of potential for growth and evolution in healthcare marketing, calling it a largely untapped opportunity to apply technology-driven solutions to app development and modernizing the patient experience. "When people look at healthcare, there's a real nascent opportunity [to] use tech to drive real creativity and connectivity," she said. "There are opportunities to push on that in ways we haven’t yet envisioned." Unilever’s Health Snack Bar Graze Introduces A Squirrel as Its Chief Eating Officer (CEO)