MiQ, the global programmatic media partner, has announced several strategic hires as part of the company’s commitment in shaping the future of programmatic, further cementing its position as the preeminent authority on digital advertising for customers and the industry at large. To spearhead efforts in one of MiQ’s priority markets, the company has appointed Alfie Atkinson as CEO of UK, which he’ll serve in addition to his current role as CEO of Canada. Having launched and rapidly grown the Canadian business to what it is today, Atkinson’s new role will be integral to driving innovation for the UK. He will also work with the UK leadership team to continue to foster a client-first approach – helping partners achieve their business objectives in the ever-changing programmatic space. MiQ has also hired three new senior executives to join its global leadership team: Suzanne Strasser Grant as EVP, Global Head of Agencies & Partnerships, based in New York. With 25+ years of experience in sales and business development, and previous leadership roles at notable TV, print, and tech companies including Google, Snap, NBCU and Uber, Strasser Grant will play a crucial role in enhancing MiQ’s partnerships, especially with major holding companies and brands across the globe. Danny Hopwood as Global Chief Commercial Strategy Officer, based in London. Hopwood brings 15+ years of experience in the digital media industry – previously working for WPP, Publicis, and OMG – and is a seasoned strategist in implementing innovative and effective media solutions that enable growth in both commercial output and capability development. He will use his extensive digital media, marketing, programmatic and ad tech expertise to drive integrated technology and product partnerships with MiQ’s biggest customers. Mauricio Leon as Global Chief Commercial Trading Officer, based in London. As a longtime executive of global trading for companies like Spotify and Omnicom Group, Leon will be integral to MiQ’s global commercial trading relationships with holding companies and independent agency partners.
Parry Jones has been appointed CEO of media agency The Specialist Works, and parent company What’s Possible Group. Jones, who has been with the business for 17 years, will dedicate the majority of his time to leading media agency The Specialist Works in its mission to drive disproportionate business outcomes for entrepreneurial brands. Jones’ group role involves supporting marketing service start-ups alongside the previous CEO, Martin Woolley. Woolley moves to the role of Executive Chair of Make Possible, the Group’s investment arm. Jones began his career at Haymarket Publishing before joining The Specialist Works as a media buyer in 2006. He was a part of the team that successfully led The Specialist Works’ management buyout in 2018 and the formation of the new parent company, What’s Possible Group, three years later. Over the years, Parry has been a key architect in shaping the business and its services and capabilities. He has spearheaded the development and launch of new products, played a crucial part in business acquisitions, and served as the Deputy CEO for over two years. This extensive experience has earned him this new principal role in the agency.
Channel Factory, a global brand suitability and contextual advertising platform, has appointed Sujoyee Chatterjee as Senior Director of Product Marketing. Bringing over a decade of ad-tech experience with her, Chatterjee will be continuing to expand on Channel Factory’s impressive growth across all regions whilst also developing and solidifying a consistent communication strategy for Channel Factory’s proposition. Over the past decade, Chatterjee has amassed invaluable experience across Product Strategy and Operations Management. With an impressive variety of roles across the advertising industry, including her most recent position at TikTok, as Global Product Strategy & Operations Manager for Brand Safety, Sustainability and Verification. This particular role will help enhance Channel Factory’s relationship with global brands and publishers, whilst allowing Sujoyee to quickly integrate and make her mark on Channel Factory’s core offering of Brand Suitability.
Park Place Technologies, the global data centre and networking optimisation firm, has appointed Ian Anderson as Senior Director, Channel Sales, EMEA. A seasoned channel professional, Anderson joins Park Place with a wealth of experience spanning over 30 years in the partner ecosystem. He has held various channel roles that encompass a portfolio of IT infrastructure lifecycle solutions at HPE, and more recently at Telefónica Tech. Anderson has worked with and led teams in both the direct and channel space, aligning perfectly with Park Place, which has a go-to-market strategy that is driven through a direct and partner sales delivery model. Anderson’s role will focus on leading channel engagement to deliver first-class IT infrastructure lifecycle services, across a full portfolio of IT infrastructure services, which include, professional services, managed services, network performance management and monitoring, as well as a core offering of hardware and OS support for storage, servers and networking hardware.
Newcastle-based media agency, Route, has announced the appointment of high-profile media planner Greg Paterson, as Head of Client Planning. Paterson is well respected in the media planning world, with over twenty years of experience working with major brands on their media strategy, with his past client portfolio including Kellogg’s, HSBC, Vauxhall and Microsoft. A Geordie by birth, Paterson has been lured back to the region to lead client planning at fast-growing and multi award-winning agency Route. Within his new role, Paterson, whose previous experience includes time spent at Dentsu, Total Media, Manning Gottlieb OMD, PHD and MediaCom, will be responsible for all client strategy and planning, while also cementing the team’s knowledge and skillset across all media.
Global experience design company, Imagination, is thrilled to announce the appointment of Warren Adcock as Production Director for its New York City office. Adcock brings an impressive track record of over 13 years of planning and executing innovative live productions, pop-up events, and large-scale semi-permanent and permanent experiential activations for high-profile clients. He joins Imagination from his previous role as Creative Director for Midnight Theatre and Hidden Leaf; a state-of-the-art performance venue in the heart of New York’s Manhattan West, which he conceived and produced. Previously Adcock was the Director of Operations for MSG Ventures, the technology and design group for MSG Sphere.
Boostworks, a provider of employee reward and recognition, benefits delivery and wellbeing solutions, has announced a newly created role of Executive Chairman of the Board. Mark Bond, previously UK Board Director, Customer Operations at Vodafone, succeeds Andy Lister, who recently stepped down after serving as Non-Executive Chairman for the past two years. Bond brings a wealth of expertise to this new position of Executive Chairman, boasting a distinguished track record in strategy and operations. His proficiency has propelled businesses to success across the UK, Europe, Africa, Asia, and North America. With a history of overseeing workforces from 50 to 8,000+ individuals, Bond’s leadership abilities are undeniable. Beyond his executive roles, as the Group Chair for Vistage, he has demonstrated an exceptional talent for elevating organisations by mentoring and coaching their top-tier leaders.
Appear, a specialist in media processing and delivery technology, has announced the appointment of Andy Rayner as Chief Technology Officer (CTO). In this pivotal role, Rayner will steer the technological strategy, ensuring Appear remains at the forefront of customer-centric innovation. Rayner brings a wealth of experience from his 13-year tenure at Nevion and 22-years at BT. At BT, Rayner designed the UK’s Digital Terrestrial TV network, for which he was awarded the Martlesham Gold Medal, BT’s highest accolade for technical achievement. After becoming Head of Broadcast Solutions at BT Innovate and Design, Rayner then joined Nevion, where he became Chief Technologist, receiving a technical Emmy for his JPEG 2000 standardization work. He holds several patents from his time at Nevion and BT. Rayner is a seasoned speaker, regularly presenting at industry events.
Digital media, marketing and technology company Brave Bison has appointed Laura Crofton-Atkins as Chief Operating Officer and promoted current Chief Operating Officer Buster Dover to the newly created role of Chief Business Officer in a move designed to maximise operational efficiency, drive revenue and nurture talent in line with the company’s ambitious growth plans. Both will report to Executive Chairman Oliver Green. Crofton-Atkins was Chief Operating Officer at Made to Engage when it was acquired by UNRVLD in 2022 and boasts an impressive twenty years’ experience in operations and delivery at the likes of Tribal DDB, POSSIBLE and Fortune Cookie. Throughout her career, she has demonstrated a consistent ability to enhance agency operations, spearhead organisational change, and drive successful business transformations at scale. She has also played pivotal roles in a number of acquisitions and integrations, including the acquisition of Fortune Cookie by WPP and its subsequent merger with Possible, and more recently, Made to Engage’s acquisition by UNRVLD.
Cedara, The Carbon Intelligence Platform, is excited to announce a significant addition to its Advisory Board, Gerry D’Angelo, former VP, Global Media at Procter & Gamble (P&G), is bringing his wealth of expertise and passion for sustainability to further strengthen Cedara’s mission. D’Angelo, a prominent figure in the industry, boasts over three decades of experience within the media sector. During his tenure as Vice President of Global Media at Procter & Gamble, the world’s largest advertising company, he held pivotal responsibilities in advancing media best practices and cultivating capabilities. His role also encompassed the supervision of relationships with media agencies and the establishment of global partnerships with industry giants like Google, Meta, Amazon, and TikTok. In his new capacity at Cedara, he will provide guidance on strategy, foster strategic partnerships, ensure alignment with industry frameworks, and assist in co-developing measurement best practices.
Creative effectiveness platform DAIVID has announced it has hired digital media leader Dan Best as Strategic Advisor, Clients. Best, who has held senior roles at companies including Teads, Unruly (now Nexxen) and The Telegraph, will be responsible for expanding DAIVID’s relationships with brands and agencies. Best brings to his new role more than two decades of experience in commercial leadership and driving growth for various different companies, including as a member of global media platform Teads’ senior UK team, where he was responsible for expanding the company’s relationships with FMCG clients. Before that, Best was also part of the Unruly executive team responsible for the sale to News Corp in 2015 – at the time the most successful exit of any UK ad tech business. He was also Head of Advertising EMEA for WildBrain Spark, the largest independent global kids and family media company. Dan’s role means the continued growth of DAIVID’s senior team. He will be based in London and will report directly to CEO Ian Forrester.
Jellyfish, a global digital marketing business, is delighted to announce the appointment of Stephanie Parry as Executive Vice President (EVP) of Client Management. With an impressive track record spanning over 17 years, Parry brings a wealth of experience in both large multi-market organisations and high growth SMEs. Parry’s focus will be on Jellyfish’s growing portfolio of enterprise clients, as well as partnering with SheUnit, the global employee resource group (ERG) for those who identify as women to ensure Jellyfish keeps DEI and gender equality ambitions at the forefront. Before joining Jellyfish, Parry served as the Managing Director at Shine for Women, where she played a pivotal role in advancing gender equity across large global corporations.
After an exciting year, CTI Digital, backed by Private Equity firm LDC, is consolidating its position with a number of strategic hires and promotions: Nina Mack as Director of Customer Experience & Acquisition, James Tillotson as Sales Director, and Bethan Cawley as Sales Director. As Director of Customer Experience & Acquisition, Mack will focus on seamlessly integrating the UX, Strategy, Performance Marketing, Social, Influencer and Brand Design Communications teams. These capabilities, when combined with CTI Digital’s pedigree in website build, hosting and ongoing support & optimisation allow the firm to provide clients with a set of combined capabilities that maximise the potential for digital & commercial growth. In her previous role, Mack was Founder and Managing Director of the digital Conversion Rate Optimisation (CRO) and UX agency ‘Worship’. Worship was acquired by CTI Digital in March 2021. Since joining CTI Digital, Mack has been instrumental in jointly leading CTI’s Strategy & Experience team with Matt Smith. Cawley joins CTI Digital as a Sales Director, bringing with her 25 years’ worth of experience in sales and marketing. Having moved agency-side from an in-house role, she will provide a fresh perspective on agency sales and marketing, working on clients including Network Rail, British Library, and Places for People. James Tillotson also joins CTI Digital as a Sales Director. He has come from McCann Manchester, where he was the Business Development Director. The two sales directors have been brought in at a time of growth for the team and will play a large part in taking CTI Digital’s message to market.
