Internal Memo: CCO Susan Credle Leaves Leo Burnett for FCB
Posted in: UncategorizedA few minutes ago, Interpublic broke the news that Susan Credle, who joined Publicis’ Leo Burnett in Chicago back in 2009, would be leaving her CCO position there to join the FCB organization.
She won’t officially begin her new job until January, but when she does she will relocate to New York to serve as global CCO; she replaces Jonathan Harries, who was promoted to the global CCO role in 2013 following rumors that he planned to leave the agency entirely.
The Wall Street Journal notes that Harries will now be FCB’s chairman and calls the Credle hire “a major win for FCB Worldwide Chief Executive Carter Murray” after “a long list of client losses.”
In the FCB press release, Credle offers this quote:
“I believe what we do in the advertising industry makes a difference. And, I have learned that for us to make a difference, three elements must be present. People, place and purpose. These are the three reasons I am now joining FCB as part of the global leadership team.”
FCB recently won a few pieces of new business, most prominently Michelob Ultra, Vonage and whatever the hell this is. Credle’s hire caps a string of creative poachings: FCB Garfinkel recently signed Eric Coster of Untitled Worldwide as ECD and the agency’s Western office named Karin Onsager-Birch of London’s Blue Hive as its CCO.
Here, via one of our many tipsters, is the internal memo from head Burnetter Rich Stoddart:
All,
Sometimes big agencies lose those larger-than-life people. Today is one of those days for Leo Burnett. After more than five years as our Chief Creative Officer, Susan Credle is leaving the agency to take on a new global job at FCB and return to her beloved New York City.
We are sad to see her go. Her strategic smarts, relentless push for that “final four percent” and talent for driving big platform ideas have helped nurture and embolden our agency. She’s worked tirelessly to strengthen our creative product, our client relationships, our reputation and our talent. And she helped us develop important new entrepreneurial offerings including DoD, Greenhouse, HKX and LBi.
For all of these reasons and so many more, Susan will be greatly missed.
But she leaves us at a time of tremendous momentum and possibility. On the heels of winning Marshalls and launching important, creative business campaigns for Allstate, Esurance, McDonald’s, UHC and more, we are well positioned for further positive growth. Part of Susan’s legacy is an energized, solid group of strong creative leaders who she helped groom to drive great product and business change for our clients. I have every faith in them to continue what we have built.
We will work quickly and aggressively to identify a new creative chief. We will consider both internal and external candidates and are supremely confident in our ability to attract great talent, thanks to the work you do and the way you do it.
We will get together to celebrate Susan prior to her last day, which is June 30. In the meantime, I know you’ll join me in thanking Susan for the imprint she left on us as people and as an agency. To us, she’ll always be a Burnetter.
Rich
