David Jones Out At Havas

David Jones is out as CEO of Havas. He is being replaced by Yannick Bollore, son of French business magnate Vincent Bollore, who took control of the Paris-based ad holding company in 2005 after a boardroom coup.

Jones had been with the company since 1998 and was named global CEO in March of 2011.

The company said Jones was leaving to become co-founder and CEO of a new tech start-up that is launching next month. 

Jones also oversaw Havas Worldwide, the company's flagship ad agency. Replacing him in that role is Andrew Bennett, who has held the post of co-president at the agency. 

Yannick Bollore said that Jones "has contributed significantly to the improvement of the results and organization of the Group and its standing amongst clients and the industry."

Jones cited his "burning desire" to be an entrepreneur. "I want to thank the Bollore Group and Vincent Bollore in particular for his support and mentorship over the last eight years." 

The changes are effective immediately.

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Yannick Bollore succeeded his father as chairman of the holding company in August of 2013.

By that time he was already part of the holding company’s senior executive team as one of four executive directors, along with Jones, then-CFO Herve Philippe (who has since left the company) and Vincent Bollore.

Yannick was also by then a vice president and board director at the holding company and chairman of content development units Havas360 and H2O Productions.

According to the company’s 2012 Annual Report, Yannick Bollore was one of the highest-paid executives at the company. His total compensation last year was approximately $600,000, a nearly threefold increase over 2011.

Up until September 2012, when he became an executive director of Havas, the younger Bollore was CEO of Bollore Media, which operates national TV channels in France, as well as some publications, a polling unit and cross-channel advertising network.









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