Today KBS named Guy Hayward, veteran of French-based, Havas-owned property BETC Worldwide, as its first global CEO.
The agency, owned by our friends at MDC Partners, looks to sign more global clients to share across six offices stretching from Los Angeles to Shanghai. Hayward himself brings the requisite industry experience to his new role: the Oxford-educated executive spent seven years as an account director at JWT’s London and Barcelona offices and three years managing Microsoft, Nike, and Coca-Cola for W+K Amsterdam.
He also co-founded 180 Amsterdam in 1998 and remained there as a partner until 2009, when he joined JWT as chief executive of its UK group. (180’s Los Angeles division scored a spot on AdAge’s 2014 agency A-List.) After two years in the latter position, he moved into a business development role with BETC.
In an official statement provided to AdAge today, Hayward said that “My job is to bring in global new business and to build relationships with existing clients.” He will work in the agency’s New York office and report to Global Executive Chairman Lori Senecal.
This isn’t the only recent high-profile hire at KBS NY: back in August, the agency added two new CCOs in former Grey ECD Dan Kelleher and BBDO/W+K/Martin veteran Jonathan Mackler.