FutureBrand’s global CEO and top team walk out as IPG–Omnicom deal nears

LONDON: Nick Sykes has quit as global chief executive of FutureBrand after 15 years steering the strategy and design shop, with his entire executive team following suit. The departures mark a seismic shake-up for Interpublic Group as it inches closer to completion of its transformative merger with Omnicom.

Gone are global chief creative officer Gianni Tozzi, global chief strategy officer Jon Tipple, people and culture director Katy Nunn, global chief growth officer Lauren Maynard, and executive assistant Louise Nelson. All but Tozzi, who worked from Milan, operated out of London.

The purge coincides with FutureBrand’s formal eviction from McCann Worldgroup. Staff will now report directly to their respective McCann offices, with the London contingent moving under McCann U.K.’s wing. The agency, which counts about 60 employees in the capital, has serviced clients including World Athletics Ultimate Championship and SCI Ventures.

Sykes joined FutureBrand in 2010 as managing director before ascending to global CEO in 2019, having previously headed up McCann Worldgroup. Tozzi spent 17 years at the agency, climbing from executive creative director in 2008 to global CCO last year. Tipple logged 13 years and also served as head of planning at McCann London for three years. Nunn arrived in 2019 as senior people manager for Europe before being promoted to people and culture director in 2021. Maynard, who spent less than two years at FutureBrand, previously held the post of EVP and global managing director for McCann Worldgroup’s advisory services. Nelson clocked a decade at the agency and earlier worked at TBWALondon.

A McCann spokesperson said the overhaul would bring FutureBrand “into closer alignment with McCann,” asserting that design and brand experience now occupy the front and centre of modern brand-building. “Nick and his leadership team have left FutureBrand in a position of strength as a globally respected authority on brand design. We’re grateful for the impact they’ve had on our company and our clients.”

FutureBrand U.K. operates from the same London building as McCann, McCann Worldgroup and Weber Shandwick. In July, MullenLowe Global joined the party, while MullenLowe U.K. decamped to Old Bailey, home to FCB London and IPG Mediabrands. In the United States, FutureBrand operated under Dxtra, IPG’s PR and specialist communications arm.

Both FutureBrand and IPG have stonewalled on the departures. The timing is anything but coincidental—Omnicom’s acquisition of Interpublic is expected to close imminently, spawning the world’s largest advertising holding company from the wreckage of two industry titans. As the deal nears the finish line, expect more heads to roll.