Nick Brien is out as McCann Worldgroup CEO.
Replacing him as chief executive is Harris Diamond, chairman and CEO of Constituency Management Group, Interpublic’s PR, public affairs, sports and entertainment marketing, corporate branding and experiential marketing arm.
Adweek in July wrote about Brien's struggles in leading the holding company.
Brien said then that the problem was purely a public relations issue, insisting that he needed to better communicate his "great progress" in transforming the legendary agency. But The Wall Street Journal and others have speculated in recent weeks that McCann Worldgroup—which ditched its longtime Erickson name under his tenure—would soon show him the door. The New York Times' Media Decoder blog noted that in keeping with rumors of dissatisfaction, a news release about the change devoted almost no attention to Brien and omitted the typical boilerplate that he was “leaving to pursue other interests.”
Some have also wondered whether Brien's recent work to add an AOL project was in fact a last-ditch effort to save his job.
McCann Worldgroup also gave Luca Lindner and Gustavo Martinez broader mandates and added geographic responsibility as Brien exited. They will join Diamond in a new three-person office of the chairman for McCann Worldgroup.
Lindner will add Middle East and Africa responsibilities to his current title of president of Americas for McCann Worldgroup. Martinez will add Asia-Pacific oversight in his role as president of Europe.
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