MAM
James R Heekin III named Grey Worldwide chairman and CEO
MUMBAI: Grey Global Group has named James R Heekin III as chairman and CEO of Grey Worldwide.
He will assume global responsibilities for Grey Worldwide immediately and will report to Grey Global Group chairman, president and CEO Edward H Meyer.
Heekin III served as Euro RSCG Worldwide chairman and CEO from 2004 until his resignation in early August.
Meyer said, “Jim Heekin is a world-class leader on the global advertising stage and a giant in our industry. His arrival opens an exciting new chapter in the growth and development of Grey Worldwide. Jim and I have known each other for years. I have long respected him for his personal qualities and business achievements, and I look forward to working with him. This is a great day for Grey Worldwide, our clients and our people.”
Heekin said, “The opportunity to lead Grey Worldwide is the high point of my professional career. I look forward to partnering with Ed Meyer and the accomplished people working across the network in 83 countries. Our goal is to make Grey the global leader in talent; powerful branding ideas grounded in consumer understanding and superlative creativity and delivery in every channel for our clients. These have been, and will continue to be, the cornerstones of Grey’s growth.”
Heekin III had joined Euro RSCG Worldwide in late 2003 as president and COO.
Heekin is credited with spearheading the revitalisation and growth of the global network. Under his leadership, Euro RSCG Worldwide dramatically transformed its business development efforts, winning in excess of $700 million in new business and adding such blue-chip accounts as Charles Schwab, Jaguar, Glaxo SmithKline’s Advair, Schering-Plough’s Claritin, Heineken USA’s Dos Equis Beer, Lacoste and LG Electronics in Europe.
At Euro RSCG, Heekin launched the company’s global marketing services brand, Euro RSCG 4D, the world’s largest digital network; energised the agency’s management ranks with new account, creative and planning talent and elevated creative standards, making it one of the top five Lion winners at Cannes 2005.
Earlier in his career, Heekin served as chairman and CEO of McCann-Erickson WorldGroup and McCann-Erickson Worldwide. Under his leadership, McCann was named “Global Agency of the Year” in 2001 by Adweek magazine.
In 1998, Heekin was named to the London-based post of Regional Director of Europe/Middle East/Africa for McCann.
Heekin began his advertising career in 1975 in the Research and Planning Department of J. Walter Thompson. After a brief stint in brand management at General Foods, he joined Bozell Worldwide in 1980 as executive vice president, management director on Chrysler. He returned to JWT in 1985 to lead the Miller and Burger King accounts. In 1988, he was appointed General Manager of JWT New York and, together with his creative partner, James Patterson, led the agency to unprecedented new business success. In 1993, under Heekin, J. Walter Thompson New York was named “Agency of the Year” by Adweek.
