VMLY&R poaches Anna Vogt from TBWALondon

VMLY&R has appointed Anna Vogt as its UK chief strategy officer, ending an 18-month stint without a top strategist.

Vogt will join from TBWALondon, where she has been chief strategy officer for the past four years. 

In her new role, Vogt will lead the strategic output of the London office at the WPP agency, reporting to UK chief executive Justin Pahl, and working closely with UK chief creative officer Laurent Simon. 

The agency’s clients include the Department for Transport, Ford and Wendy’s, as well as Boots, with much of its business moving to the shop after WPP’s retention of the Walgreens Boots account in 2020.

Simon said: “I am thrilled to have Anna on board with us. Brilliant strategy is crucial to achieving creative excellence. I can’t wait to create innovative and purposeful work together.”

She will lead a department of more than 60 strategists and introduce VMLY&R’s global Strategic Studios proposition, which aims to address challenges facing marketers, to the UK market.

Pahl and Simon joined VMLY&R in 2019 – from Abbott Mead Vickers BBDO and BBC Creative respectively – after the 2018 merger of the Y&R and VML networks.

Pahl said: “Anna is a brilliant strategist and an incredible leader with empathy and tenacity. She will help us realise the full potential of VMLY&R in the UK.”

Lewis was the only member of the former Y&R London management to survive the merger but she moved to Dentsumcgarrybowen in March 2020.

Transition timings for Vogt are being discussed.

Vogt began her career as a fellow at WPP and described her appointment as “returning to the mothership”.

She said: “I’m ridiculously excited to start working alongside Justin and Laurent. They have already made such an impact on the agency and the work, and their ambition for this next stage is absolutely contagious.

“WPP gave me my first job in advertising and introduced me to a career in strategy. I’ve always felt deeply grateful for the opportunities this has afforded me.”

TBWALondon is expected to announce a replacement for Vogt in the coming weeks.

It will be the second change in the Omnicom agency’s senior management this year after former Now chief executive Larissa Vince replaced Sara Tate in the same role last month.