Mitch Markson Joins Ogilvy Public Relations for Dual Leadership Role

NEW YORK, April 11, 2012 /PRNewswire/ -- Ogilvy Public Relations (Ogilvy PR), an integrated global communications firm, announced today that Mitch Markson has been appointed President of the agency's Global Consumer Marketing Practice and Chief Creative Officer for a new Purpose Branding initiative designed to bridge multiple existing specialty offerings. Markson starts the new position June 4, 2012.

In this role, Markson's responsibilities will be two-fold: leading and expanding the Consumer Practice community worldwide to deliver relevant, strategic and breakthrough, idea-driven campaigns for new and existing clients; and crafting purpose-branding solutions for a variety of clients and their stakeholders.

Reporting to Ogilvy PR's Global CEO, Christopher Graves, Markson will advise and lead the consumer practices at the regional and local levels and work collaboratively with Ogilvy & Mather colleagues to help clients realize their integrated marketing needs across advertising, PR and social media.

"Mitch will be an Ogilvy giant," said Graves.  "He will bring his long experience to bear in a whole new context that only Ogilvy & Mather can offer−and one that clients now crave and demand. That is, working in an environment of deep integration across all disciplines, and bringing to life Ogilvy's unique purpose branding methodology of the "big ideaL™"

Graves pointed out that Ogilvy & Mather offers Mitch a much larger canvas to paint on, allowing him to collaborate with Ogilvy & Mather's consumer brand leaders in PR, advertising, direct and social. And secondly, to bring his creative firepower to purpose-driven specialized offerings.

Purpose Branding will help clients and their brands connect emotionally with all stakeholders, who now, more than ever, expect brands to advance and accelerate a commitment to social responsibility alongside the expectations of financial performance. This new approach will creatively bridge such existing specialized practices as: OgilvyEarth (specialists in sustainability and environment); Ogilvy Impact (behavior change related to a company's own employees); Social Marketing (behavior change among consumers and large populations), and Corporate Social Responsibility.

"Given the emphasis brands are placing on integrated communications and the desire for big ideas that can break through multiple channels, I am thrilled to join Ogilvy," said Markson.

"I look forward to helping advance the discipline of consumer marketing in a business and social media environment where PR is evolving and adding substance, consumer participation and active advocacy along with credibility to the full marketing mix. Ogilvy's culture of collaboration, creative heritage and commitment to help clients deliver game-changing work with tools like Ogilvy Fusion™ and approaches like the big ideaL™ were what attracted me to the firm.  I look forward to working with this network of talented professionals across disciplines and around the world," Markson concluded.

Markson joins from Edelman, where he served as Global Chief Creative Officer. He also ran the agency's global consumer practice for more than 10 years using techniques he developed to shape consumer PR as a more strategic discipline, as well as an equal partner to advertising in the brand realm. During his 21-year tenure at Edelman, he has helped clients including Unilever, Microsoft, HP, Starbucks, KFC, Hershey, Shell, GE and Barilla find and apply galvanizing ideas that add emotional, financial, and societal value to businesses and stakeholders alike. 

In 2007, Markson created "good purpose," now entering its fifth year, a study developed with Edelman market research firm StrategyOne consisting of 8,000 consumers in 16 countries as well as an approach that combines profit with purpose, citizenship with consumerism and looks at a more expansive role for "Purpose."  

Throughout his career, Markson's creative ideas have contributed to the execution of campaigns that have won leading PR industry awards including Silver Anvil, SABRE and European Excellence awards. Prior to Edelman, Mitch began his public relations career at Ketchum and Burson-Marsteller.

Markson holds a B.A. in English literature from Colgate University and an M.S. in international Public Relations from the School of Public Communications at Boston University.

About Ogilvy Public Relations
­­­­­­­­­­­Ogilvy Public Relations (Ogilvy PR) is a global, multi-disciplinary communications leader operating in more than 80 offices across six continents. In 2011, Ogilvy won more Cannes PR Lions than any other agency worldwide, was named Global Digital/Social Consultancy of the Year by the Holmes Report, won Specialist Agency of the Year in Asia Pacific (Campaign Asia), and won the WPP global, top award (WPPed Cream, Crème de la Crème) for the fourth time in five years. Ogilvy PR integrates deeply with all Ogilvy & Mather disciplines (advertising, direct marketing, activation, promotional, digital and entertainment) through the proprietary Ogilvy Fusion™ approach to delivering comprehensive, business solutions through content creation, community building, and communications with measurable results. Ogilvy PR is a unit of Ogilvy & Mather, a WPP company (NASDAQ: WPPGY), one of the world's largest communications services groups.  For more information, visit our Web site at www.ogilvypr.com or follow us on Twitter at @ogilvypr.

SOURCE Ogilvy Public Relations Worldwide