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JWT Sydney boss Richard Carr departs, replaced by Jenny Willits

Jenny Willits

Jenny Willits

JWT has promoted client services director Jenny Willits to the role of general manager for the agency’s Sydney office, replacing Richard Carr who left the agency at the end of last year for personal reasons.

Carr moved to the agency in October 2012 from fellow STW agency Ogilvy, where he was also general manager.

Willits has spent the last 18 months as the agency’s client services director having been promoted to the role after working as a group account director running the Kellog’s ANZ business.

She has worked for Saatchi’s London for three years before moving to Australia to take up a role as a client director for Publicis,  for three years before moving to The Monkeys in the same position to lead the UBank and Foxtel accounts. Her last role before moving to JWT was a group director at George Patterson Y&R.

JWT Australasia CEO John Gutteridge said in a statement: “This is a well deserved promotion and we are delighted to have Jenny as Sydney’s new general manager in an exciting time of high energy and growth for JWT. We have a very ambitious team here at JWT, with a very clear plan and plenty of aptitude to bring it to life.

“So it is fitting that Jenny, a very determined and talented leader, should take the helm.”

Willits will be responsible for the day-to-day management of JWT’s Sydney office, while also continuing to build collaboration between JWT offices across Australia and New Zealand.

She said in a statement: “I’m privileged to have been asked by John to lead the agency at this exciting time. Work already in the pipeline for 2014 bodes well in terms of growth and opportunity for the Agency and we look forward to announcing new client wins shortly.

“I’m also genuinely excited to be partnering with such a talented and diverse group of people, and importantly to continue working closely with John as he runs the JWT ANZ offering.”

JWT is yet to announce a new appointment to the client services director role.

The agency has struggled to firmly establish itself as an agency known for creating original work as opposed to one kept busy repurposing international creative for the local market. In 2012 CEO John Gutteridge said it was his ambition to increase the Sydney ad shop’s local output, aiming to shift the agency from being perceived as a global agency to a country brand.

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