Well-known analyst Brian Wieser is going back to the ad agency business, joining WPP’s GroupM media buying unit as global president, business intelligence.
Wieser, who covered ad agencies and media companies as senior analyst for Pivotal Research, previously had been executive VP, global director of forecasting for Interpublic’s Magna Global unit.
In his new role, starting this week, he will collaborate with GroupM’s agencies and other WPP companies to gather, analyze and distribute marketplace intelligence and give clients insights about markets, audiences, partners, platforms and supply and demand dynamics.
He will report to GroupM Global CEO Kelly Clark.
“We are thrilled to welcome Brian to our team,” said Clark. “He has deep understanding of economic and industry dynamics, consumer behaviors, media partners, and technology platforms. He is uniquely suited to create insightful analysis that will help our clients make marketing investment decisions.”
In a December report, Weiser was bullish on WPP, which has undergone many changes since the departure of its long-time top exec and architect Martin Sorrell. “Overall, we view WPP’s strategy as sound and see its financial goals as realistic,” he said.
Over the course of his career Wieser has also served as CMO for Simulmedia, an investment banker at Lehman Brothers and analyst at Deutsche Bank.
“There is no better opportunity to help shape the future of marketing and advertising than this role with GroupM and WPP,” said Wieser. “The entire advertising industry is dealing with the consequences of technology-driven disruption, and every day the rules for how brands go to market are being rewritten. For nearly eight years at Pivotal, I’ve been connecting with every corner of the market to evaluate how the major players are leading - or reacting - to this change. I’m excited to use this experience and insight at GroupM and WPP to help clients grow.”
