Two Australia’s top advertising executives, Mark Coad and Leigh Terry, have left their respective roles as the Australian and APAC leaders of IPG Mediabrands following a takeover by rival Omnicom.
The pair were officially relieved of their duties yesterday, just before Omnicom announced sweeping changes to its creative agency business.
Coad’s role as IPG Mediabrands Australia CEO was always under threat once the dust had settled on Omnicom’s takeover of Interpublic.
Omnicom Media Group Australia is currently led by Kristiaan Kroon, who only recently was given the CEO job title.
Terry’s role, IPG Mediabrands APAC CEO, was also under a cloud with Tony Harradine carrying out a similar role at Omnicom.
Coad is the chair of the Media Federation of Australia and one of the most respected (and liked) media agency leaders in the country.
Ironically, he was a pivotal figure in growing and leading Omnicom’s media agencies OMD in the 2000s and PHD from 2012.
In 2020, Coad left Omnicom, where he spent most of his career, to take the reins of IPG Medibrands, an organisation he has led for the past five years.
B&T produced a two-part feature on the life and career of Mark Coad last year.
Terry is also an Omnicom veteran and close friend of Coad and former Onicom Media Group boss Peter Horgan.
Neither Coad or Omnicom would comment on news of his departure.
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