Leo Burnett has moved shortly to exchange the departing CCO Chaka Sobhani. Mark Elwood has been promoted from ECD to CCO for the UK, and he has some very large sneakers to fill. He takes up the function instantly, regardless that Sobhani will apparently keep round for six months till she joins DDB as worldwide CCO.
Sobhani has been international in addition to UK CCO of Leo Burnett since Might 2021, and she or he could have spent most of her time travelling fairly than knee deep in UK inventive output. It’s attainable that Elwood has been steering the company’s inventive ascent: he’s on the credit for McDonald’s “Increase your arches,” the Morrisons Christmas advert with the singing oven gloves, and Tui’s holidaying elves.
However Sobhani can be onerous to exchange with regards to elevating the company’s profile and new enterprise presence. Publicis Groupe has now misplaced two sensible ladies with star energy this yr – UK group CEO Annette King left for Accenture Track in April and has already been promoted.
Leo Burnett are actually claiming that Elwood is behind the inventive reboot at Leo Burnett, saying that he has run the inventive division for the final three and a half years. He joined in 2020 from MullenLowe the place, as a founding father of 101, he took the inventive reins after the impartial company was acquired by IPG. He was head of artwork and artistic director at Fallon in the course of the Cadbury “Gorilla” glory years.
Elwood stated: “It’s a privilege to be requested to steer the inventive division at Leo Burnett. There is no such thing as a higher inventive company within the UK in my view and no higher workforce throughout the board.”
Carly Avener, CEO at Leo Burnett UK, stated: “Mark is an unbelievable expertise and a progressive chief. He’s been central to Leo’s success over the previous three years as we’ve grown the dimensions, form and flavour of the division. You possibly can see that coming by within the high quality of the work throughout all our shoppers and the energy of the expertise he has attracted and nurtured.”
