• by Steve McClellan  @mp_mcclellan, August 30, 2013

Havas Chairman Vincent Bollore resigned today and his son Yannick succeeded him. The news is not a total surprise as the agency indicated earlier this year that the succession plan was in the works.

The company made the announcement as it reported first half results. Organic revenue growth was less than 1% for the first quarter and 1.7% for the second quarter.

Yannick Bollore stated that he was proud to take the reins of Havas "as it squares up to the major changes taking place in our sector."

Vincent Bollore took control of Havas in 2006 after staging a board room coup. He subsequently acquired the largest single interest in London-based Aegis Group and tried several times to force a merger or strategic alliance between Havas and Aegis. But Aegis was unwilling and he sold his shares in Aegis to Dentsu when the Tokyo-based holding company acquired Aegis earlier this year.