To GroupM N.A. CEO Kirk McDonald, everything's a Rubik's cube waiting to be solved

To Kirk McDonald’s mind, flipping his body of sales-side knowledge to apply to the buying side of the business was exactly what was needed to run a media agency network.
September 01, 2021

How did a guy known throughout the industry as being exceedingly nice become the North American CEO of GroupM, the media agency network owned by agency holding company WPP? On Kirk McDonald — who has been in the role for a year — Adam Gerhart, global CEO of Mindshare has this to say: “Although he might not have been the usual suspect for an agency role, the skillset and perspective he has was absolutely applicable. It’s provided a different vantage point than someone who’s grown up or only worked in an agency their whole life." Read a profile of McDonald’s leadership below.

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To Kirk McDonald’s mind, flipping his body of sales-side knowledge to apply to the buying side of the business was exactly what was needed to run a media agency network.

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The Future of TV Briefing this week looks at the companies that are aiming to revamp the traditional TV ad format for streaming.

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Depicting LGBTQ+ characters with compassion, nuance and complexity will help brands reach new segments and appeal to the LGBTQ+ community as well as those desiring queer stories.

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Workers in media are more likely to have permission to work from home permanently than they are to be expected to come into an office five days per week.

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SLAM magazine’s women’s basketball social media vertical WSLAM is coming out with a special print issue sponsored by the WNBA, part of a growing trend to invest more money into women’s sports and its coverage.

As head of equity strategy at LinkedIn, Dunbar is charged with improving equity inside and outside the Microsoft-owned business-centric social network.
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