• by Steve McClellan  @mp_mcclellan, April 24, 2018

WPP’s VML has promoted Michael Stich to Chief Business Officer, a new post in which he is tasked with leading the expansion of the agency’s 5-year-old advisory practice. 

The practice works a bit like an outside business consultant, except that it is inside the agency. It’s designed to assist the agency’s top clients with their efforts to build marketing capabilities and leadership, as well as accelerate organizational change within their companies. 

Stich joined VML from sibling Rockfish, where he was CEO, when the latter was consolidated with VML last September. Prior to Rockfish, Stich worked at Bridge Worldwide, Texas Instruments and Dell. He will be based in VML Cincinnati and report to agency president Eric Campbell. 

“Our most senior marketing clients are tasked with bigger jobs than ever before,” Stich stated. “Today’s CMOs act as change agents for their entire organization, responsible not only for delivering a vision for sustainable growth, but also creating connected businesses by transforming enterprise IT and modernizing commerce and channel strategies.” 

The advisory practice spans the North America, Europe, Middle East and Africa and Asia Pacific regions.

The offering includes proprietary market landscape analysis, long-term growth strategies, marketing technology selection and implementation, organizational fitness and change leadership and innovative strategic alliances. 

The unit targets a number of client business sectors including automotive, CPG, retail, energy, technology and health care.