• by Richard Whitman , Columnist, May 18, 2017

There was once a time when the CxO title actually meant something. Well, at least from the perspective that you knew what CEO, CIO, COO, CTO and CFO stood for. Now, with the proliferation of titles -- sort of like the proliferation of the whole participation award thing -- no one knows what CxO stands for anymore.

So GroupM has hired a new CTO. Right, so that means they hired a Chief Technology Officer, right? Nope. Their version of CTO is Chief Transformation Officer. Because, yeah, ad agencies are always hip and cool and all about transforming themselves into something other than what they are because, yeah, reinvention is good and doing the same thing over and over again -- even if it's the tried-and-true right thing -- doesn't fly with hip and cool agencies. And so...Chief Transformation Officer.

Anyway, GroupM has announced the appointment of Lindsay Pattison as Chief Transformation Officer. She will lead -- ahem "change initiatives" -- across GroupM and its agencies, and, working with other WPP companies, will create new operational models aimed toward better serving clients.”

Pattison will oversee transformation in the areas of talent and leadership development, culture and diversity. She will remain a member of GroupM's global executive committee, reporting to Kelly Clark, global CEO of GroupM.

Pattison also continues as CEO of GroupM agency Maxus.