King promoted to CEO role at OgilvyOne

by Noelle McElhatton, Marketing Direct 09-Oct-08, 10:48

OgilvyOne London has promoted its MD Annette King to the role of chief executive, replacing Mike Dodds who left last month to become CEO of Proximity London.

The agency's deputy managing director, Sam Williams-Thomas, is to replace King as MD.

Paul O'Donnell, chairman, EMEA of OgilvyOne Worldwide, described the management transition as "very smooth" and "business as usual" for clients and staff in the wake of Dodds' departure.

King has worked at OgilvyOne London for the past eight years. She made her name running the agency's Amex 360 EMEA business for four years. In 2005 she was promoted to client service director, with responsibility for new business. She is credited with winning accounts from Mothercare, HBOS and First Great Western.

O'Donnell said the promotions were an acknowledgement of King's and Williams-Thomas' "excellent records in the fields of new business and account management...they also understand the agency, its culture and the client base intimately".

In 2007 King led the team that won the British Gas DM pitch, for British Gas, following it up with British Airways' global DM and loyalty business. She spent eight years at Wunderman, mostly in New York, before joining OgilvyOne.

Williams-Thomas joined O&M Direct as a graduate trainee in 1989 working on accounts including BT, Help the Aged , Rank Xerox, Spillers Pet Foods. and Ponds. In 1991 he moved to OgilvyOne New York, developing DM campaigns for Kraft General Foods. A five-year stint at Craik Jones followed, before Williams-Thomas returned to Ogilvy in 1999. Since then he has worked on accounts including BT and TV Licensing.