PHD Taps Anne-Marie Schaffer To Lead West Coast Offices

Champion of Innovation and Integration Moves into Managing Director Slot at Omnicom Media Group Company

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Mar 08, 2010, 11:03 ET

NEW YORK, March 8 /PRNewswire-FirstCall/ -- PHD, an Omnicom Media Group company, has named Anne-Marie Schaffer to the role of Executive Vice President, PHD West, and Managing Director of its Los Angeles and San Francisco offices.

Schaffer joins PHD following a stunningly successful three-year run at Ignited, LLC, where she was credited with the dramatic expansion of the privately-held advertising agency's media presence, and advancing digital integration across account teams and product offers.

In addition to doubling Ignited's media billings within her first 18 months, and extending the Los Angeles Top 20 Agency's imprint with the opening of a New York office, Schaffer also forged an alliance across the SEO analytics and business intelligence teams that better aligned Ignited's research metrics and key performance indicators with clients' business objectives.

Prior to her position at Ignited, Schaffer was Managing Partner/Director, Strategic Planning at Mediaedge:cia, where she led Cingular Wireless/AT&T's $1 billion media account, and established her expertise in translating econometric insights into real business applications, working closely with Cingular's finance department to maximize long-term subscriber profitability.

Schaffer's client experience includes a variety of markets and industries, including consumer goods and services, automotive, high tech, entertainment and hospitality. In addition to Cingular Wireless, a short list of recent clients includes Honda, Toyota, NBC Universal, Sega, Activision and Princess Cruise Lines.

In making the announcement of Schaffer's selection, PHD CEO Scott Hagedorn highlighted the EVP's ability to maintain the balance between two of the defining dynamics in today's media industry -- the drive to innovate and the need to integrate.

"Even as Anne-Marie is persuading clients to get ahead of change before they get left behind, she never forgets that it's not just about filling the media toolbox with the newest tools -- it's about putting the right tools in there as well," says Hagedorn. "She doesn't let anyone – agency or client -- default to any one comfort zone, and that's the kind of approach we need to take PHD's West Coast operation to a whole new competitive level."

Commenting on her new role, Schaffer says, "In a media world in which game-changing innovation is becoming the rule rather than the exception, we can't just take a respond and replace approach to new channels. Rather, we need to help clients understand how -- or even if -- an innovation is relevant to a business objective, and where it fits in the channel integration hierarchy. As its award winning work for clients like HBO demonstrates, PHD is at the forefront of agencies that are defining the new innovation and integration dynamic, and demonstrating the potential impact on ROI. I'm very excited to be a part of that effort."

Schaffer's official start date at PHD West, the client list for which includes Safeway, SOYJOY, Mitsubishi and Overture Films is March 3.

About PHD

Founded in London in 1990 as the first strategic media agency, PHD (www.phdnetwork.com) is a proven innovator in communications design and execution with 2,000 employees in over 60 countries.

The PHD Network is part of the Omnicom Media Group (www.omnicommediagroup.com), a division of Omnicom Group Inc. (NYSE: OMC) (www.omnicomgroup.com). Omnicom is a leading global marketing and corporate communications company. Omnicom's branded networks and numerous specialty firms provide advertising, media, direct and promotional marketing, public relations and other specialty communications services to over 5,000 clients in more than 100 countries.

SOURCE Omnicom Media Group