We’ve been expecting this announcement for a while and the standard flowery email went out last week, which of course undoubtedly covers a multitude of failings as they always do.
On Friday the global, independent Out of Home media agency Talon announced the appointment of Mike Saunter to the role of Group Chief Financial Officer (CFO), Henry Lucas in the newly created role of Group Chief Commercial Officer and Stewart Easterbrook extending his remit to become Talon’s Executive Chairman BUT alongside these new hires, Talon have restructured the global board with Barry Cupples stepping down as Group CEO and Eric Newnham, founder of Talon, stepping in with immediate effect.
- Mike, an accomplished international leader, joins the Talon board as Group CFO. He has extensive experience in the advertising industry with time as International CFO at Clear Channel Inc. and as Global CFO with advertising agencies Crispin, Porter + Bogusky in the US, and Bartle Bogle Hegarty in the UK. Most recently Mike has spent time in an advisory capacity to early stage technology businesses in electric vehicle charging and blockchain infrastructure.
- Henry will be part of Talon’s senior leadership team, based in the UK with responsibility for developing and diversifying Talon’s global commercial strategy. He joins Talon with a wealth of commercial expertise having spent the last nine years at Dentsu, most recently as Commercial Operations Director at Amplifi Global. Prior to Dentsu, he held Group Account Director roles at WPP and IPG.
In the press release Eric Newnham, Interim Group CEO Talon, said: “I look forward to re-taking a hands on role leading Talon towards its global growth objectives and wish Barry well with his future endeavours. Looking ahead, Stewart’s wealth of experience in leading digital-first businesses including MiQ, will be instrumental in delivering our future growth. I’m excited to work more closely with him to deliver Talon’s commercial objectives. Mike and Henry are extremely experienced business leaders in driving commercial growth and operational efficiency. They will be pivotal in helping us leverage our powerful and intelligent tech and media offering to further drive the business forward.”
Mind you, this is all rather funny how it finally happened within weeks of Nick Parker being let go at what is Kinetic/WPP [1].