Dentsu CEO Angela Tangas departs leaving network hunting new leader

News Plus 20 May 2022 - 2 min read

Dentsu CEO Angela Tangas departs leaving network hunting new leader

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Tags: Angela Tangas Dentsu Holding Groups

Dentsu ANZ CEO Angela Tangas is leaving to helm the network’s UK and Ireland business. She leaves behind a streamlined group after consolidating agencies and media. The surprise move leaves Dentsu hunting a new CEO locally.

What you need to know:

Angela Tangas leaving to head up Dentsu UK & Ireland.
Streamlined ANZ group on hunt for new CEO.

Dentsu ANZ CEO Angela Tangas is leaving to helm the network’s UK and Ireland business.

The surprise move leaves Dentsu hunting a new CEO locally.

Tangas joined Dentsu as operations chief in 2019. Before the year was out she had replaced former Mediabrands supremo Henry Tajer as CEO. Tajer, brought in to remap the company’s direction – media heavy under previous incumbent Simon Ryan – had been in the job less than a year before international bosses decided a different direction was required.

After winning a string of major accounts under Ryan as Carat and then group CEO, the company subsequently endured some client and personnel losses.

Tangas was tasked with restructuring to diversify away from over-reliance on media buying revenues and further into CX, commerce and analytics while removing silos.

She wasted little time in driving significant consolidation, first merging media agency Vizeum into performance agency iProspect, then consolidating CX units, Amicus, Davanti, DWA and Gyro into Merkle while pushing Accordant into Isobar.

Isobar was subsequently folded into BWM Dentsu.

She then created Dentsu Media, housing Carat, iProspect, SMG and Dentsu X, run by Sue Squillace.

Late last year Tangas poached Kirsty Muddle from Cummins&Partners to head its creative division, spearheaded by heavyweight ad agency BWM, whose founders had reached their seven year earn-outs after being acquired by Dentsu in 2015. This year the firm hired John Riccio as CEO of Merkle and CHE Proximity's David Halter as strategy and growth chief.

While the group appeared to be rebuilding, streamlining agency brands, personnel and shedding some clients, Dentsu said ANZ “has seen seen three years of consecutive growth, most recently Q1 2022 organic growth of 13.6 per cent” in announcing Tangas’ departure. "Angela has proven herself to be a transformational leader" said Giulio Malegori, EMEA CEO Dentsu International, to whom Tangas will now report.

In a tight talent market, Dentsu must now find a new CEO capable of ensuring the network competes with other major holdcos in a shifting market dynamic.