Ogilvy Names Julianna Richter Global CEO of PR and Influence

Ogilvy announced today that Julianna Richter has been appointed global chief executive officer of public relations and influence. In this role she will oversee all aspects of Ogilvy’s global PR business which spans reputation management, brand influence, C-Suite and advocacy, media influence, and employee experience and will be responsible for growing Ogilvy’s PR and influence operations globally and in North America. She will assume the role in January 2021.

Commenting on the appointment, Andy Main, global CEO of Ogilvy, said: “Communications is critical when it comes to driving growth and transforming businesses, which is why it is essential for Ogilvy to have a best-in-class public relations and influence business and a cohesive, modern offering. I am confident Julianna’s communications background and proven leadership experience at global agency networks combined with her recent work bringing together brand building, data and technology to unlock growth will create value for our clients at speed and scale.”

An industry veteran, Julianna is a strategic communications and operations leader who has worked with agencies, start-ups and Fortune 500 companies across consumer marketing, health, digital media and technology sectors. Her background and expertise includes brand, product and executive communications; business growth and expansion; global operations and integration; and business transformation, working with c-suite leaders to deliver business results. She spent over 17 years at Edelman, where she held various executive leadership positions at the global and regional level. Before departing in 2018, she served as U.S. chief operating officer responsible for driving growth and operational efficiency of the largest region, and had management oversight of US practices and business functions including human resources, diversity and inclusion, client excellence, marketing, innovation and learning and development. 

Julianna said: “I have long admired Ogilvy’s iconic brand and its ability to create breakthrough creative ideas that earn influence, bolster brand reputation, and drive sustainable growth for clients. I’m looking forward to working with the talented teams around the world to build on that strong foundation as we take Ogilvy’s PR and influence business to a new level, delivering best-in-class creative work with speed and agility.” 

Most recently, Julianna was a partner at Waypoint Partners, a global growth advisory and M&A firm, that works with high growth companies to scale their business by increasing capabilities, capacity and capital. She has advised companies and agencies on how to build, buy and evolve new offerings and specialties that accelerate growth and provide a competitive advantage for the future. As partner, Julianna led strategic engagements with digital media, creative and technology companies, applying her expertise in brand building, communications, content and influencer marketing to grow and scale their business. 

Prior to her role as Edelman’s U.S. COO, Julianna was president of global client management where she was responsible for strategic growth and market expansion of the firm’s global client portfolio. In addition to her management responsibilities, Julianna led numerous growth initiatives including the creation of three specialty brands focused on technology, health and food & beverage, and managed a multi-year global transformation to integrate creative, digital and analytics capabilities into the firm’s core PR offering. 

Throughout her career, Julianna has advised clients across a variety of areas and has worked with leading brands such as AstraZeneca, Genentech, PayPal, Campari, Cigna, Starbucks and Taco Bell to develop PR and communications strategies, launch consumer campaigns and manage company-wide issues and crises.