Former Starcom Australia executive Nancy Lan has made the switch to the client side, joining for the next 12 months as Virgin Australia as Head of Partnerships, Retail and Revenue Growth.

Lan steps into the role as temporary maternity leave cover, filling in for Katya Abramzon as she steps away to have her second baby. Lan will be reporting to chief marketing officer Libby Minogue.

"I’m excited to join Virgin Australia at a pivotal time in their transformation. I look forward to fully using my experience to contribute to commercial and business outcomes for Virgin over the next year," Lan told Mi3.

Her departure from the Publicis Groupe media agency was first reported in April, alongside the redundancy of the agency's chief client officer Lisa McMillan.

"Nancy has been a valued member of the Starcom team for more than seven years, and her tremendous contributions to our agency and clients have been greatly appreciated. Her dedication, expertise, and unwavering commitment have left an indelible mark on our organisation, and we offer our warmest wishes for her continued success in the future," said Starcom Australia CEO Nick Keenan at the time.

Lan had more than a decade-long career with the French Holdco, having first joined Zenith in 2011, where she worked for the agency's London and Shanghai offices. She later became Sydney Agency Director in at Starcom in 2017 and quickly climbed the ranks to become the agency's National Managing Director by the end of 2021.

Lan started her career on the client side, working for Telstra as the telecom's Media Sponsorship and Content Manager for four years from 2006. She posted the career update to LinkedIn on Monday.