Stagwell Names New CEOs for Assembly Division

Marcoms group Stagwell has appointed longtime dentsu exec Liz Rutgersson as CEO of its Assembly division, with a 'global and North American remit'. Connie Chan takes on the role of CEO of Assembly APAC, while continuing as Chief Growth Officer of Stagwell APAC.

Assembly combines data, expertise and technology to fuel growth for brands, powered by a proprietary, in-house technology solution called STAGE, and supported by more than 3,000 experts in 44 offices worldwide. In December it promoted Bridget Hopkins to the role of Europe CEO.

Rutgersson (pictured above) brings more than twenty years' experience spanning brand building and strategy, digital media, analytics and search optimization, and reports to Slavi Samardzija, Global Chair of Media & Commerce at Stagwell. She spent sixteen years at dentsu, most recently serving as CEO of iProspect North America for the past three years, and earlier working as Chief Media Officer, Merkle Americas. She joined Merkle when it acquired performance marketing agency Periscopix in 2015.

In the Global CEO role she succeeds Rick Acampora, who has moved into a new group level role focused on developing commercial frameworks. Jill Kelly, former CEO of Assembly North America, will support the leadership transition to ensure continuity for clients, teams and partners.

Chan (pictured below) brings three decades of experience across media, marketing and business leadership. Since taking on the Chief Growth Officer role, she has helped expand Stagwell's presence across key APAC markets, driving new business growth, strengthening regional client partnerships, and advancing capabilities across media and digital experience. Before joining the group last year she was Chief Executive of OMD China for five years - earlier she led the Government & Public Sector Practice at WPP for more than two years, and was MD and then Chief Client Officer during eleven years at MEC in APAC.

'Liz and Connie are exceptional leaders with a proven track record of driving growth for advertisers, building high-performing teams and helping clients succeed in a rapidly changing media ecosystem,' states Samardzija. 'Their appointments strengthen Assembly's leadership for what comes next and reinforce our commitment to creating a more modern, agile agency that delivers meaningful business outcomes for clients around the world.'

Web site: www.assemblyglobal.com .

All articles 2006-23 written and edited by Mel Crowther and/or Nick Thomas, 2024- by Nick Thomas, unless otherwise stated.