Lida has appointed the head of its New York operation Jonathan Goodman – the man once described as having the agency “in his blood” – to succeed chief executive Victoria Fox as it gears up to unveil its new proposition.
The appointment follows the departure of both Fox and chairman Matthew Heath this summer and the loss of a number of key accounts, including Boots and Ikea.
Goodman first joined Lida as group account director in 2010 after spells at Wunderman and Kitcatt Nohr. He was promoted to managing partner and then managing director in 2014.
Last year, he became partner and president of Lida New York, following the 2016 acquisition of digital customer experience agency MCD Partners and its subsequent relaunch.
At the time, Fox said: “Jonathan has Lida in his blood and a brilliant track record of driving and growing client revenue.”
Goodman will return to London in January 2019, taking on leadership of the UK business alongside chief creative officer Ben Golik, who joined the agency from Rapp in February 2018, and newly-promoted chief operating officer Claire Cootes.
He will continue to oversee the New York office, supported by chief strategy officer Graham Phillips, and Georgia Graham-Leigh, who has been promoted to managing director.
As part of his new role, Goodman will also take on responsibility for further expansion of the Lida network; it also has offices in Australia.
The UK office of the M&C Saatchi agency has recently picked up a number of new accounts, including Axa, Hotels.com, Stansted Express and The Football Association.
M&C Saatchi Worldwide chief executive Moray MacLennan said: “Lida continues to be a hugely important part of our group offering, and we’re delighted to have someone of Jonathan’s calibre at the helm. He understands the core ingredients needed to grow a successful agency, as we’ve seen with his successful launch of the New York office. I’m looking forward to seeing the next chapter of Lida’s development.”
Goodman added: “Lida has an infectious desire to win and push for the very best work. Having successfully taken this approach to the US, I am thrilled to bring my learnings back to the UK. I can’t wait to get stuck in to the challenge of redefining and reinvigorating the agency for the future.”
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