MEC
Roles: Head of Digital
The Client
With domestic and international billings over $27billion, and a total workforce of over 5,000 people – MEC is one of the world’s largest media planning and buying agencies.
Their clients include Lloyds Banking Group, BGL, Everything Everywhere, Wm Morrisons, Bupa, Nintendo, Danone, Paramount Pictures.
The Brief
We were asked to help find the Head of Digital for the recently retained Lloyds Banking Group account.
The candidate was going to lead the digital output of MEC’s newly created business unit, Greenhouse.
MEC wanted an elite digital talent that could evangelise digital to the most senior clients while also producing a digital roadmap for Lloyds Banking Group’s future activity. They’d also be responsible for the digital output of the agency, from both a strategic and commercial standpoint.
Considerations
We were briefed to target senior level candidates that had a deep understanding of digital across all platforms: digital, mobile, video, search, programmatic, content, and social.
We aimed to secure someone with a strategic digital pedigree; someone that could juggle outlining the client’s digital needs, then deliver an integrated approach to digital planning that squared with Lloyds’ traditional media offering.
Another consideration: time.
The Lloyds team restructure was a complete overhaul, so MEC needed the right calibre of candidate in an immediate time frame.
Approach
Our heritage across the digital landscape meant we could leverage our relationships across both media agency and digital media owner verticals. We also covered the brand market across major banking groups and similar structured brands, and used our extensive advertising sources to make sure we covered all bases.
Because of the time sensitive nature of this search we also conducted a thorough search across the market for candidates at a senior level on limited contracts close to ending, or available to start immediately.
Results
MEC accepted that candidates at this level would most likely have a long notice period: we secured the right candidate who was available to start within two weeks.
