New MD for Walnut as Jane Rudling Retires

London-based consumer behaviour agency Walnut Unlimited, now part of Accenture Song, will have a new MD from 1st November, as Laura Ablett steps up to replace Jane Rudling, who is retiring. Both have been with the company and its predecessors since the 1990s.

Walnut describes itself as 'the human understanding agency', drawing on specialisms in neuroscience, behavioural psychology and economics to help clients in sectors including retail, technology, financial and FMCG. The company was formed in 2017 from the combination of four existing insight businesses at marcoms network the Unlimited Group, which remains Walnut's parent and itself became part of business services giant Accenture Song eighteen months ago.

Rudling (pictured top) worked as a planner and researcher client side at Honeywell, Coca-Cola and Mars before joining Winchester-based research firm Marketing Sciences in 1993. She was MD there for 24 years prior to its merging into Walnut, where she also took the role of MD. In 2021 she moved to focus on heading up Unlimited's Insights & Analytics division; but she then resumed the Walnut MD position in August 2023. The company said on LinkedIn: 'Jane's leadership has shaped who we are today, and we couldn't be more grateful for everything she's achieved with our people and our clients.'

Ablett (pictured below) joined Marketing Sciences as a Research Director in 1997, and became a Director of Walnut in 2017. She currently oversees teams of researchers across sectors, with a focus on FMCG, Retail and Shopper. The company says she brings 'huge expertise and energy to lead Walnut into its next chapter.'

Web site: www.walnutunlimited.com .