Another Top Researcher Bolts Carat, Madison Avenue?

by Joe Mandese, May 25, 2006, 8:00 AM

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Another top research executive has stepped down at Carat, a media agency that opened shop in the U.S. nearly a decade ago largely on the basis of its research capabilities. Rob Frydlewicz, vice president-director of research for Carat Insight, the agency's research arm, is leaving, MediaDailyNews has learned. What makes Frydlewicz's departure noteworthy is that it comes 18 months after former Carat research diva Joanne Burke stepped down as executive vice president and managing director of Carat Insight, and like Burke before him, Frydlewicz is not leaving for another job, but simply because he's grown disenchanted, say executives familiar with his move.

Frydlewicz could not be reached for comment, but he was a key player in Carat's research organization, and recently played a central role in the development of Carat's magazine research symposium with Meredith Corp.

In a bigger sense, Frydlewicz's departure is symbolic of a broader exodus of media research and strategy executives from Madison Avenue. When Burke, one of the first executive hired by Carat, stepped down in December of 2004, she said she simply wanted to change her life. That was the same reason Mary Ellen Vincent cited when she stepped down from the top research position at MediaVest one month earlier. Neither Burke nor Vincent have turned to the business.

Meanwhile, other high profile media research executives have left the agency world. Two of Madison Avenue's most renowned media researchers - MindShare's David Marans and PHD's Barbara Zack - left to join IAG Research, a company that Wednesday announced $47 million in new equity financing, ensuring that it will be a major player.

Earlier this year, former MediaCom research chief Tony Jarvis joined Clear Channel Outdoor, while former OMD research diva Beth Uyenco joined MSN.

Meanwhile, Frydlewicz's departure couldn't come at a worse time for Carat. It took the agency a year to find a replacement for Burke, naming Amy Drill senior vice president-media innovation development in November 2005. Drill joined from research supplier Ipsos, where she was senior vice president product development and marketing.

Frydlewicz could not be reached for comment.

Media Researchers That Have Left Madison Avenue

  
May 2006: Rob Frydlewicz leaves Carat (destination unknown)  
May 2005: David Marans leaves MindShare (now at IAG)  
August 2005: Beth Uyenco leaves OMD (now at MSN)  
December 2004: Joanne Burke leaves Carat  (whereabouts unknown)  
November 2004: Maryellen Vincent leaves MediaVest  (whereabouts unknown)  
September 2004: Tony Jarvis leaves MediaCom Worldwide  (now at Clear Channel)  
April 2004: Gregg Liebmann leaves Zenith Media (now at CNN)  
April 2004: Barbara Zack leaves PhD (now at IAG)  
December 2003: Jon Swallen leaves Universal McCann. (now at TNS)  
August 2003: Ira Sussman leaves Initiative Media. (now at the Cabletelevision Advertising Bureau)