Ad leader Hugh Baillie joins Weber Shandwick

Hugh Baillie, UK CEO of FullSix and former CEO of ad firm Ogilvy & Mather, is to join Weber Shandwick as head of strategic engagement disciplines across EMEA.

Most recently CEO of FullSix, Baillie has extensive advertising agency experience, spanning Grey, Saatchi & Saatchi and BBH, as well as Ogilvy & Mather.

Client experience includes Unilever, American Express, Ford, Motorola, Diageo, British Airways and Gillette.

Based in London, Baillie will have oversight of a growing team of engagement specialists at Weber Shandwick, across the EMEA region.

Colin Byrne, Weber Shandwick’s UK and EMEA CEO, said: “As EMEA’s most PR award-winning and Cannes Lions-winning agency, we are delighted that someone with Hugh’s creative dynamism and experience is joining to lead our engagement work for clients.

“His experience with top global brands and multi-channel creative and engagement strategy will effectively lead our growing team of creatives and strategists from across the marketing, digital and media mix.”

The agency’s chief digital officer, Chris Perry, added: “The stakes continue to rise on fusing creative, engagement-driven ideas with new media approaches to capture attention and reach intended communities.

“As we continue to build and broaden capabilities across EMEA markets, top leadership talent like Hugh will help to shape and deliver how Weber Shandwick answers the call for clients.”

Baillie said: “Weber Shandwick has a clear expertise for delivering business results for clients no matter the communications channel. Their team understands the power of combining creativity with strategy to make an impact for brands and businesses.

“It is an incredibly exciting time to be joining the agency, and I look forward to helping the team do great work and deliver exceptional results for our clients.”

Meanwhile, Weber Shandwick Germany has appointed Bernhard Hofer as head of engagement engine operations. Based in Berlin, Hofer joins from German digital comms agency UDG.