Charles Ping has quit his role as strategy director of Communisis to become chief executive of Engine UK group’s data strategy agency, Fuel.
The former DMA chairman has been charged with building up the business and bedding in recent new business wins including The Glenlivet, T-Mobile and Wickes.
Ping succeeds Simon Wall, who has left to pursue “new interests” and will work closely with the Fuel managing director, Edmund Smiley-Jones.
A well-known figure in the DM industry, Ping started his career at the Financial Times before moving to the Guardian News & Media as direct marketing manager in 1998.
In 2003 he was promoted to head of CRM and was responsible for all direct and data strategy for the group.
He took redundancy from the Guardian in 2008 and joined Ai Data Intelligence as commercial director. The company was bought by print firm Communisis in December of that year for £12.6m, as part of the firm’s expansion into the wider marketing services arena.
Initially taking on the role of account director, Ping took the strategy director post nearly two years ago, reporting to managing director Jon Cano-Lopez. And, as well as sitting on many industry awards’ panels, he has been a director of the Advertising Standards Board of Finance (Asbof) since 2004.
Engine UK chief executive Debbie Klein said: “Charles has great knowledge of the new strategic approach to making big data bite-sized, and then releasing its commercial benefit. He will be a great asset to the team.”
