Spark Foundry, the UK Acceleration agency, part of Publicis Media, has hired EssenceMediacom’s Kate Anthony in the newly created role of Chief Client & Transformation Officer. In this role, Anthony will be responsible for growing and developing client relationships, with a focus on supporting their business transformation plans and roadmaps. She joins the agency’s leadership team and will be working closely with Spark Foundry CEO, Pete Edwards and the wider executive team. Anthony will also be tasked with creating new product propositions that complement the traditional planning and buying offering, and drive innovation within the agency and for its clients. Anthony joins from EssenceMediacom where she held the role of Global Managing Director, Creative Futures for the last year. She has operated within leadership at EssenceMediacom in some capacity for several years, with experience across a number of different roles including Head of Transformation and Head of Creative Systems, across a multitude of sectors including Finance, FMCG, Entertainment, Tech, Retail and Luxury.
Valtech, a specialist in digital services and business transformation, has announced the appointment of its first Chief Collaboration Officer (CCO), Suzanne Schroder. In this newly created c-level role, Schroder will support and maintain Valtech’s legacy as a very collaborative and people-oriented agency, helping to lay the foundation for the agency’s future growth. As Valtech’s first CCO, Schroder will play a pivotal role in facilitating trust and collaboration, both internally and externally. Bringing collaboration into the c-suite will enable the agency to operate in a way that keeps pace with the economic and societal challenges facing today’s businesses, all while addressing the business transformation challenges of world-leading brands. Schroder joined Valtech over 27 years ago, managing business units at a regional and global level. Having led hugely successful international transformation programs at scale, Suzanne will continue to accelerate and strengthen cross-border collaboration. She will work to elevate Valtech’s strategic approach to collaboration, so it’s seamlessly embedded in ways of working and thinking.
Reputation, a specialist in reputation experience management, has announced that it is staffing up with two leadership hires. Pam Dodrill has been named Chief Customer Officer, focused on championing the experience of Reputation’s fast-growing customer base. Brad Null, a data scientist expert and UCLA artificial intelligence professor, will return as the first-ever Head of Artificial Intelligence, where he will foster innovation through future-forward solutions to enhance the Reputation platform. A seasoned leader in the SaaS space, Dodrill joins Reputation with more than 25 years of experience focused on improving the customer journey. She has led high-performing teams from startup to public entities at organisations such as Zapier, ServiceMax, Skilljar and Salesforce. Brad Null will return to Reputation to help shape the vision and direction of the AI-driven platform solutions. A prominent thought leader in the space, Null is the inventor and creator of Reputation Score, Reputation’s proprietary metric that uses artificial intelligence to take a snapshot of everything people say about a brand’s specific locations. He also holds more than 20 data and AI-related patents and patent applications, most of these on behalf of Reputation.
Wavemaker has appointed Dani Saadu to the newly-created position of Head of People and Culture. Working closely with the ExCo, and reporting to Katie Lee, Chief Operating Officer, Saadu will be responsible for building a best-in-class talent proposition for Wavemaker UK working alongside Wavemaker Global and Group M UK. As part of this, a key aspect of the role will be working closely with the leadership teams, supporting them to create an inclusive culture that promotes the right behaviours and strengthens Wavemaker’s commitment to inclusivity. Saadu brings over 15 years of experience as a people and culture, talent management, and organisational development professional. Prior to joining Wavemaker, he held several director-level People roles in multiple sectors spanning retail, recruitment, pharmaceuticals and travel. He is an expert in developing practical and sustainable programs that align with business goals and deliver measurable returns on investment. The latter will additionally support the external-facing aspects of his new position, which includes working closely with Wavemaker clients to understand their talent priorities, as well as partnering with teams in pitches to discuss talent.
Celerway, a provider of business-grade mobile connectivity, has announced the appointment of technology stalwart Marianne Styrman as Chief Operating Officer. Styrman, who brings almost 30 years of technology experience as a founder of start-ups and leadership positions at large international technology corporations, will be responsible for Celerway’s operations and management strategy as it continues its growth and innovation across the international market. Reporting into Celerway co-Founder and CEO Audun Fosselie Hansen, Styrman’s appointment comes as the company looks to continue to develop its advanced connectivity platforms, allowing businesses to operate beyond the edge and capitalise on the transformative benefits of high-speed, low-latency 5G. Styrman was most recently the CEO of Last Mile Solutions, launching the company from a tech start-up to a high-performing business in the loT connectivity space. She was also the CEO of Movilisto and Moustik Holding AG, two telecommunications companies that pioneered SMS services.
Einride, a freight mobility company that provides digital, electric and autonomous technology, has announced Corinne Aaron starting as the new Chief Marketing Officer. Linnéa Kornehed Falck, who has held the role since co-founding Einride in 2016, is set to embark on a new phase of focusing on her roles as Deputy CEO and Executive Member of the Board. Corinne Aaron brings nearly two decades of global marketing experience, with over ten years in leadership positions, to her new role at Einride. Most recently Aaron served as the Chief Marketing Officer at the mobility solutions brand Lynk & Co, and prior to that, served as the Head of Marketing, EMEA at Tesla for six years. At Tesla, she led a team through vigorous growth including expanding into six new markets, launching four marque products and supporting the scaling of Tesla infrastructure including the openings of gigafactories and the scaling of the supercharging network to over 500 locations throughout Europe. Additional experience includes time with the adidas Group, supporting marketing efforts for the Reebok brand, launching the US subscription brand Lovevery in Europe and spearheading leisure marketing for Hyatt Hotels in Chicago.
Incubeta, the global marketing group, has announced the appointment of Amy Crowther who joins the team in a newly created role of Managing Director, Customer Solutions. In her new role, Crowther joins Incubeta with a proven history of strategic thinking, innovation and leadership, as well as extensive experience in delivering exceptional customer experiences. She will join the US leadership team and contribute to its ongoing global and US-centric solution efforts.
Bambuser has made two strategic appointments to strengthen its leadership team as the company continues to drive innovation and expand its presence in the global Video Commerce Industry. The company has appointed Qabil Shah as Chief Marketing Officer (CMO) and Rasmus Mencke as Chief Product Officer (CPO). Shah brings a wealth of senior-level, global marketing experience to his role as CMO at Bambuser. With an impressive background in enterprise marketing and a track record of driving growth for renowned software companies, including Nutanix, VMware, and SAS, Shah is poised to lead Bambuser’s marketing efforts to new heights. His strategic vision and expertise in navigating extensive stages of expansion will undoubtedly contribute to Bambuser’s continued growth and success. As the newly appointed CPO, Rasmus brings over two decades of product development and strategy experience to Bambuser. With a distinguished career that includes product leadership roles at Salesforce, Planday, and Oracle, Rasmus has consistently demonstrated his ability to drive innovation, deliver results, and shape the direction of product portfolios. His impressive portfolio of 10+ patents reflects his commitment to innovation and advancing technological solutions.
Aptum, a global provider of Managed Services and Advisory & Consulting Services, has announced the appointment of Ian Rae as CEO and President of the company, JP Rosato as Chairman of the Board, and David Wigglesworth as Chief Revenue Officer. These strategic additions to the executive team are integral to Aptum’s vision to capitalise on the growing AI-driven demand of Multi-Cloud solutions in the market. A seasoned entrepreneur and technology visionary, Rae founded CloudOps in 2005, as well as cloud.ca, a Canadian cloud computing platform. He serves on the board of Air Transat and recently completed a board appointment with Genome Canada. He is actively involved as an advisor and angel investor in the Montréal, Québec, enterprise technology startup community. With his extensive expertise in cloud operations, software development, and managed services, Rae brings invaluable insights to his new leadership role. JP Rosato, Operating Partner at DigitalBridge, has been appointed Aptum’s new Chairman. With over 30 years of extensive design, engineering, and operations experience within large, complex technology environments, Rosato’s expertise will be instrumental in accelerating and driving Aptum’s business growth. He has played a pivotal role in developing innovative services, defining monetisation strategies for technology assets and investments, and establishing groundbreaking partnerships between enterprises and providers. Aptum is also thrilled to welcome David Wigglesworth as Chief Revenue Officer. With more than 25 years of experience in sales leadership, sales operations, demand generation, and territory development, Wigglesworth’s proven track record will be pivotal in leading the sales organisation across the US, Canada, Latin America, UK, and Europe. His expertise in SaaS, business continuity, storage, networking, cloud, and professional services will empower Aptum to provide superior solutions to its customers, helping them optimise workloads across hyperscale, regional, private, and edge cloud platforms. Wigglesworth’s most recent role was Senior VP of Global Sales at Panzura, and prior to that he held senior executive positions at Commvault, OVH, VMware, and EMC Corporation.
Go Inspire Group, a Xerox company, has announced the appointment of Andrew Adkins as Director of Insight & Analytics and Caroline Maddox as Digital Service Director. These strategic appointments are part of Go Inspire’s ongoing commitment to expanding its services and delivering exceptional value to its clients. Adkins brings a wealth of expertise to the group’s Insight & Analytics division. Having worked with Go Inspire in the past, Adkins rejoins the company as Director of Insight & Analytics, to further strengthen the team’s capabilities in delivering insightful and data-driven solutions while also evolving the scope of analytics provided to clients. Adkins previously held data-focused roles in businesses including Findel, United Business Media and Acxiom. With a strong background in both B2B and B2C data marketing and analytics, Adkins has consistently delivered outstanding results both client and agency-side, driving increased response rates and improving customer retention. In his new role, Adkins will spearhead Go Inspire’s partnership with Bloomreach to transform the scope of analytics, whilst also driving campaign optimisation, customer segmentation and improved business intelligence for the existing clients. Maddox joins Go Inspire as Digital Service Director, bringing a diverse range of skills acquired through her extensive career in senior digital roles. Having recently completed her Master’s degree in Advanced Digital Marketing from Manchester Metropolitan University, Maddox will bring a fresh perspective and expertise to the Go Inspire team. Her impressive track record includes senior roles in renowned companies such as Co-op, as well as spearheading a successful full service digital agency. Her experience spans various sectors, including food retail, travel, financial services, education, and utilities. Maddox has excelled in delivering exceptional marketing performance through existing and emerging digital channels. At Go Inspire, Maddox will play a key role in advising clients about optimising their marketing efforts in the digital landscape. Her expertise in e-mail marketing campaigns, social media engagement and customer journey mapping will be invaluable in expanding the business’s digital services portfolio and driving enhanced results for clients.
MRM UK has announced the appointment of Hernan Garcia Dietrich and Tobias Tercic as Associate Creative Directors. Starting with immediate effect, the pair join from Saatchi & Saatchi London and will report directly to Ioana Filip, Chief Creative Officer at MRM. Having experienced significant growth over the past year while expanding its client portfolio with disruptive brands, the agency has brought in the dynamic creative team to push boundaries and create exceptional, impactful and holistic campaigns for MRM’s flagship accounts. The duo has won multiple Cannes Lions, Eurobest and D&AD awards and shaped numerous iconic campaigns for giants including The Coca-Cola Company, T-Mobile, Visa, Samsung, P&G, Ab-InBev, Toyota, BT and British Heart Foundation.
Hootsuite, the global leader in social media management, has announced Elina Vilk as Chief Marketing Officer (CMO). She will join the company’s executive leadership team that is an industry anomaly at 75% women, and will report to CEO, Irina Novoselsky. Vilk joins the Hootsuite nest most recently from WooCommerce where she was global CMO. Prior to that, Vilk has led global marketing teams at Meta, PayPal, eBay and Visa. With over two decades of marketing experience, Vilk brings a customer-first approach to the CMO role at Hootsuite. She is a design-thinking leader who has proven methodologies that harness the brainpower of the collective, bringing to the forefront deep empathy, insights and customer-driven innovation.
In-game audio advertising company Odeeo has announced Rohan Premnath as its new EMEA Commercial Lead. Premnath brings almost a decade of audio expertise to the role and takes Odeeo’s total team to 46 personnel across five countries. Premnath is highly accomplished in the digital audio advertising space, with experience ranging from leading partner market sales and new market launches at Spotify, to heading up sales at AdsWizz, an SXM company, as well as experience bringing in-game audio to market for Audiomob. His leadership at Spotify saw regional year-on-year growth increase to more than 65% from 2018 to 2020. In his roles, Premnath was responsible for driving expansion throughout Europe through agency relationships and strategic partnerships; he also oversaw Spotify’s ad-tier expansion into MENA and APAC.
