Dave Whiting has joined Weber Shandwick as GM of the Boston office.Whiting will start the role on Feb. 3, a Weber Shandwick spokesperson said.  Whiting was hired to oversee Weber Shandwick?ÇÖs 80-person Boston office, leading clients,?business growth and driving innovation?for?the Boston market, it said in a statement.?He will have a?broader?leadership?role?in the agency?ÇÖs?corporate affairs and advisory?business in North America as well. ?Ç£I?ÇÖm thrilled to lead the largest and most-awarded firm in Boston and the New England region,?Ç¥ Whiting said. ?Ç£Weber Shandwick?ÇÖs unmatched creativity, strategy and impact ?Çö combined with its modern corporate affairs expertise and advisory capabilities ?Çö make it a true powerhouse. Together with our Boston leadership team, we?ÇÖre ready to drive innovation, deliver measurable results, and elevate the firm?ÇÖs legacy as an industry leader.?Ç¥ Whiting succeeded Pam Jenkins, chief public health officer and chief public affairs officer, who was also acting as interim Boston GM, the spokesperson explained.Previously, Whiting was global chief operating officer with Edelman. He led the firm?ÇÖs business-to-business operations across the U.S., Canada, Latin America, Asia-Pacific, Europe, Middle East and Africa in his prior role. He joined Edelman in December 2012. Recent appointments at Weber Shandwick include the promotion of Paul Massey to South region president in December; and Marianna Ruiz?ÇÖs appointment as chief creative officer of creative growth for North America in August. Additionally, Jeff Immel, a 14-year Weber Shandwick veteran, was named as Weber Shandwick chief creative officer for Chicago. The Weber Shandwick Collective also promoted O?ÇÖLeary and Karen Pugliese to global president roles and named Joy Farber Kolo chief impact officer in December as the agency formalized its leadership under new CEO Susan Howe. Howe became CEO, succeeding Gail Heimann, in November.

IPG reported that its PR and experiential agency group experienced 1.2% organic growth during the third quarter of this year. This growth was primarily driven by ?Ç£very strong growth?Ç¥ at the sports and entertainment marketing group Octagon, along with ?Ç£continued growth?Ç¥ in public relations at Weber Shandwick and Golin.The Weber Shandwick Collective achieved ?Ç£solid?Ç¥ single-digit growth during the quarter, with strong performances in North America and LATAM. Key quarterly highlights included securing new partnerships with Primark, The Aspen Group, and clinical-stage biopharmaceutical company Bicycle Therapeutics. Additionally, the network collaborated with United Way Worldwide to launch its new brand strategy and was awarded the PR and social media accounts for gaming company Tombola.Golin also saw ?Ç£good growth?Ç¥ across its practice groups, particularly in influencer marketing, content creation, and social media. The agency continued to invest in talent, adding a new executive to lead global AI learning, who will focus on designing, developing, and delivering multimodal AI training programs for Golin's employees worldwide.Although the PR group's performance in Q3 was slightly lower than in Q2 (1.3% revenue increase) and Q1 (1.5% revenue increase), it continued its growth streak, which has lasted for more than two years since the onset of the Covid pandemic. The group?ÇÖs performance was also lower than recent quarters, such as Q4 2023 (2.9% growth) and Q3 2023 (6.5% growth).IPG as a whole saw net revenue decline by 2.9% to $2.63 billion in Q3, with flat organic growth compared to Q3 2023. Over the first nine months of 2024, IPG's net revenue was $6.75 billion, a 0.9% decrease from the same period in 2023, while organic revenue growth was 1% year-over-year.IPG CEO Philippe Krakowsky commented: ?Ç£Net revenue in the third quarter was unchanged organically from the same period a year ago, which brings organic growth over the first nine months of this year to 1.0%. During the quarter, we saw solid contributions to growth from media services, sports marketing, data management, and public relations. Our adjusted EBITA margin was 17.2%, underscoring continued operating discipline as we continue our enterprise-wide investments in growth and business transformation."He added, ?Ç£Third-quarter results include non-cash goodwill impairment expense of $232 million related to our digital specialist agencies and progress with the strategic sales process for R/GA and Huge."Krakowsky also highlighted the ongoing evolution of IPG's offerings and organizational structure, stating, ?Ç£The launch of Interact marks the next evolution of our marketing intelligence engine, which integrates data flows across the campaign lifecycle and consumer journey. This core technology connects our entire portfolio, from brand research and audience insights to creative ideation, production, commerce, and personalized CRM programs through the use of generative AI. It also powers media activation and optimization, including earned and owned channels, delivering better marketing results across media channels and touchpoints for our clients, in real time.?Ç¥Looking ahead, he noted, ?Ç£We are seeing a strong new business pipeline for both Q4 activity and longer-term AOR opportunities, and we remain focused on achieving organic growth of approximately 1% this year. At that level, we continue to target adjusted EBITA margin of 16.6%. Our long-standing commitment to capital returns remains an important priority and our strong balance sheet provides a solid foundation from which to continue to evolve our offerings and the solutions we provide for marketers.?Ç¥

Creative social media specialist That Lot, part of The Weber Shandwick Collective, has appointed former Deliveroo global head of creative Paul Hewitt as to the newly-created role of executive creative director.Hewitt joined Deliveroo in 2022 to lead its in-house creative agency. Before that, he spent nearly five years contracting with Google and YouTube in the UK as creative director. He has also worked at agencies including Karmarama and freelanced with clients such as Pinterest, Virgin, Yotel, Benefex and Waitrose. Alongside his commercial work, Hewitt is also an award-winning playwright.In his new role, Hewitt will lead That Lot?ÇÖs creative output as part of the agency's leadership team. Recent client wins include high street bakery chain Greggs, which handed That Lot its social media business earlier this year.That Lot EVP Dylan Davenport said: ?Ç£Creativity comes above everything else. So, it?ÇÖs important we have someone who has the creative vision, the creative talent and the creative leadership to deliver that promise. And Paul has all three in bucketloads.?Ç¥Hewitt said: ?Ç£Championing creativity on the inside for great brands has been a real privilege. As these brands have grown creatively, I?ÇÖve seen social become the place for brands to get noticed, find their voice and create conversation. Now, I?ÇÖve got the opportunity to work with this stellar team at That Lot to get big ideas onto the small screen.?Ç¥

Gail Heimann is set to retire from her position as global CEO of The Weber Shandwick Collective, with Susan Howe, the current global president, slated to succeed her in November.After 28 years at Weber Shandwick and five years as the global CEO, Heimann's leadership saw the firm through significant changes, especially during the Covid-19 pandemic. Her tenure culminated in the agency being named Global Agency of the Year in 2023 and the establishment of The Weber Shandwick Collective (TWSC), encompassing 11 specialist Interpublic Group sister firms in areas like consumer marketing, public affairs, healthcare, paid media, and social-first creative.TWSC boasts extensive sector and service expertise across 11 brands with offices on six continents. TWSC?ÇÖs diverse capabilities include organisational transformation, public affairs, and digital transformation. Throughout her illustrious career, she has been instrumental in building and enhancing the reputations of numerous Fortune 500 companies, working on iconic brands and campaigns across various sectors.Howe, who has been with TWSC for over 20 years, spent the last three as the global president, overseeing the firm?ÇÖs four operating regions (North America, EMEA, APAC, and LatAm) and enhancing integration between TWSC?ÇÖs partner agencies and practice areas.Previously, Howe served as the company's chief growth officer and chief collaboration officer, and she played a pivotal role in major client relationships such as AB InBev, Nestle, and Kellanova.Weber Shandwick does not currently plan to appoint a new president to replace Howe.Howe's appointment continues Weber Shandwick?ÇÖs tradition of promoting CEOs from within the agency, a practice in place since its formation from the mergers of BSMG, Shandwick, and Weber over two decades ago.