We Are Social Appoints Global COO

Global social media agency We Are Social has made a slew of significant senior hires and promotions following a year of impressive growth, bringing the agency’s headcount to 300 worldwide and over 100 in its London headquarters. 

 

The appointments include Stephen Rust, who joins the agency as global chief operating officer. Rust will be responsible for driving We Are Social’s growth globally, as well as building a team and infrastructure to support the agency's continued expansion plans. He was previously Group CFO at The Search Works and subsequently, Group CEO at i-level. 

 

The agency has also promoted senior account directors Aisling McCarthy and Clem Hancox to group account director. McCarthy manages We Are Social’s biggest client, adidas, while Hancox oversees the agency’s largest account portfolio, which includes PG tips and Heinz. 

 

In recent months, Ross Milton and James Lubbock have joined the agency from Fiat Group and FreshNetworks respectively as account directors, Aaron Walmsley has joined from Flamingo as Group Financial Controller and We Are Social has promoted senior account managers Tarryn Blackwood and Hannah Johnson to account director. 

 

We Are Social has also boosted its communications department with two newly created roles. Lauren Allchurch joins as communications director from PR agency Velvet, where she was an account director. Global internal communications manager Emma Cumming joins from the same role at Diageo.  

 

The appointments bring We Are Social’s headcount at its London headquarters to over 100, with the agency doubling its office space to accommodate the growth by taking on an additional floor in its Clerkenwell location. 

 

Stephen Rust, global COO of We Are Social, said: “Joining We Are Social was a very easy decision to make.  The agency has a unique and  powerful culture which is collaborative and very positive. The depth of the relationships with their clients is also amazing.  It’s an exciting time to be joining an agency that’s really delivering on its ambitions, both in terms of the growth of the business and the exceptional work it’s delivering for clients. 

 

“I’m looking forward to working with the rest of the management team to help guide We Are Social into the next phase of its growth.  There’s a massive opportunity to support our global client base both by extending the capacity of our existing offices as well as extending our reach via new office openings.”

 

Robin Grant, global managing director of We Are Social, added: “We’re delighted to have Stephen on board. We Are Social has reached the stage where we feel someone with Stephen’s level of expertise and experience is vital in sustaining and building upon our current success.

 

“We have built an extremely talented team to accommodate the significant number of new client wins and organic growth that we’ve experienced over the last six months. Our clients will quickly see the benefits from the additions in senior client management skills.”