Mark Lund Named President, UK & Europe, McCann Worldgroup

McCann Worldgroup today announced that Mark Lund has been promoted to President, UK & Europe, McCann Worldgroup, adding to the responsibilities he has held since 2014 as CEO of McCann Worldgroup UK. Lund succeeds Pablo Walker who, in his three-decade career with the company, also served as president of McCann Worldgroup Latin America/Caribbean before taking on the European leadership role six years ago.

Harris Diamond, chairman and CEO, McCann Worldgroup, said: “Since first joining us, Mark has focused very successfully on driving greater collaboration among all of our UK agencies while also supporting high-powered effective creativity that helped our clients achieve growth. Our reputation and our own growth in the market have benefited as well. He takes over from Pablo who has successfully guided our European network and consistently achieved recognition for creativity, effectiveness, business growth and innovation.”

With this expanded role, Lund will lead a strong, creatively recognised marketing communications network with operations in more than 45 countries, and spanning multi-discipline capabilities in advertising, relationship management, promotion/ event/ shopper marketing, design, PR, healthcare communications, and digital marketing.

“Mark has systematically grown a model of integrated marketing communications in the UK that is increasingly what clients everywhere are looking for to drive business and brand growth,” said Chris Macdonald, McCann Worldgroup’s global president, advertising & allied agencies. “He has successfully created outstanding partnerships across our agencies and with our clients to deliver the best strategic and creative solutions for their businesses. This is reflected in McCann Worldgroup being the IPA’s current reigning Effectiveness Network of the Year.”

Since joining the network in the UK in 2014, Mark has championed McCann Worldgroup’s collaborative model of integrated marketing communications and delivered strong business performance across the region with McCann UK being recognised for three successive years as the No.1 UK agency by revenue.

Lund joined McCann Worldgroup from NOW, the London agency where he had been a co-founder and managing partner. Prior to NOW, he had served as CEO of the Central Office of Information (COI), the UK Government’s marketing agency and the country’s largest client, and previous to that had co-founded Delaney Lund Knox Warren (DLKW), which became a top 10 agency in the UK. Recognised widely as an industry leader, last June he took over as chairman of the UK’s Advertising Standards Board of Finance and the Broadcast Advertising Standards Board of Finance. In 2016, he received an Order of the British Empire (OBE) for services to the advertising industry.

Pablo Walker, who was named president, Europe, McCann Worldgroup in 2014, spent the entirety of his career with McCann, excluding a three-year period when he ran his own agency in Chile. He was first hired by McCann Chile as an account assistant while he was still a university student and then rose to positions in Brazil, becoming CEO of McCann Chile in 1996.  Under his leadership the agency became No. 1 agency in that country.

He took on larger responsibilities for more countries starting in 2006 and, in 2012, became Managing Director for the Latin American/Caribbean region, and was named President of McCann WG LATAM the following year. During his tenure the region achieved its first Cannes Grand Prix and was named Effie Network of the Year. As an industry leader, he also served as President of The Chilean Council for Advertising Self-Regulation and Ethics (CONAR).

Over the past 6 years in Europe Pablo has achieved impressive results in growth, strategic and creative recognition. This included McCann Worldgroup last year being named European Agency Network of the Year at the Euro Effie Awards, EMEA Regional Network of the Year by the Cannes Lions Festival of Creativity, Campaign Magazine’s EMEA Agency Network of the Year both in 2018 and 2019, and the #1 Agency Network in East/Central Europe’s Golden Drum Festival.

During his successful career Pablo has hired, promoted, mentored and trained many of our people who today hold key roles throughout the network, reflecting his focus on recruiting the next generation of talent and encouraging diversity & engagement. Following a brief transition period through June, Walker will return to his home country of Chile as a business and marketing consultant.