Havas Media UK appoints Denstu Aegis MD Matt Adams as new CEO

Havas Media UK has appointed Matt Adams as its new Chief Executive Officer (CEO). The appointment follows Paul Frampton’s promotion to CEO of Havas Media Group UK & Ireland in January this year.

As part of Frampton’s investment and succession plan, Adams will join the Group’s senior leadership team, made up of Managing Director of Investment & Solutions, Julia Jordan, Chief Financial Officer Darren Poynton and Chief Talent Officer, Darren Minshall, and will be responsible for leading Havas Media UK’s growth strategy through managing its senior executives, spearheading new business and leading its major client relationships.

Havas Media’s senior management team including Managing Director, Natasha Murray and Head of Havas Media’s international arm, David Goodall, will report to Adams who will head up the 350-strong agency.

Matt will be responsible for driving growth across all three Havas Media offices in London, Manchester and Dublin. Graham Taylor, CEO of Havas Media Ireland will continue to report into Frampton but will work closely with Adams.

Adams joins from Dentsu Aegis where, as the Managing Director, he ran the 450-strong iProspect team across the UK. During this period, he led digital assignments for clients including Sky, American Express, British Airways, Hilton Hotels, Diageo, ASDA and ASOS.
With a career that spans both the media owner and agency landscape, Adams has a unique perspective and insight to both. Before moving agency side, Adams held a number of sales and commercial positions at Yahoo! Europe, Maiden Outdoor (now JCDecaux) and IPC Media (now TimeInc) before becoming Global Managing Partner at WPP’s MEC and later joining iProspect.

Paul Frampton, CEO, Havas Media Group UK & Ireland said: “Matt’s hybrid background makes him a rare breed – client centric, internationally minded with digital in his DNA. He is an entrepreneur, commercial and has helped iProspect scale and grow fast, so we are delighted to welcome him to join Havas Media and the Senior Leadership Team of Havas Media Group UK & Ireland to help us grow faster.”

Matt Adams, CEO, Havas Media UK, said: “There isn’t one client category that isn’t facing huge disruption caused through the digitisation of business practices and consumers lives. Havas Media are perfectly placed to guide their clients to success in this new world economy through a strong culture, innovative product and most importantly, brilliant people. I can’t wait to get started.”

Adams currently sits as a director of the Content Marketing Association and on the board of two global tech companies. He was also named in the Drum’s Digerati top 50 digital influencers 2015 and recognised as one of the top ten media planners in the UK by Campaign in 2014.

A spokesperson at iProspect said: “We wish Matt the very best in his new role. He has made a significant contribution to iProspect during his tenure and departs the business at a time of considerable growth across all divisions. With a strong senior leadership team at the helm, we are very excited about the future, and a new senior leader will be announced very soon.”

  Campaign, Content Marketing Association, Dentsu Aegis, Digerati, Havas, Havas Media UK, iProspect, Matt Adams, MEC, Paul Frampton