What the hell is a “chief brand editor” exactly? Well, apparently McCann’s New York/London creative chief Linus Karlsson knows as he’s brought on former Adweek creative editor Eleftheria Parpis (left) to fill that newly created position, which calls for someone to create journalism-based content that showcases the “creativity, innovation, and market leadership of the agency and inspires dialogue and fosters community throughout the agency’s creative network.” Right on.
But on the flipside, McCann Erickson New York has lost two creatives as the agency’s confirmed that Ahmer Kalam and Rachel Howald have left the agency. We’ve been told it was “amicable,” that they were “terrific” and that McCann “wishes them the best.” The pair, who had their own operation called Howald & Kalam prior to joining McCann, had been with the IPG unit for two-and-a-half years, give or take. Our spies tell us that they’ve both signed on as ECDs at McGarryBowen NY (but those familiar with the matter tell us that they’re not working on Verizon).