• by Steve McClellan  @mp_mcclellan, October 16, 2020

Xaxis, GroupM’s programmatic agency, has appointed Gila Wilensky President of its U.S. business.

The title is new at the agency and Wilensky effectively assumes the duties previously held by Matt Sweeney, who had been the agency’s North America CEO before moving to the post of Chief Investment Officer at GroupM last year.

In her new role, Wilensky is tasked with utilizing Xaxis’ custom AI, advanced cross-channel capabilities and pool of specialists to tie digital media investments to “real business outcomes for brands and their customers,” the agency said.

She will report to Beth LeTendre, CEO of GroupM Performance.

Previously, Wilensky served as senior vice president/media activation at sibling agency Essence, where she oversaw the agency's digital media-buying discipline for clients including Google, T-Mobile, Target, and NBC Universal.

At Essence, Wilensky oversaw investment activities including programmatic, search, social, direct buys. She also managed the shop’s team of media technologists.

Commenting on the hire, Xaxis Global CEO Nicolas Bidon said Wilenksy is a leader “who demands innovation and accountability from her teams,” and that her “vision for the industry aligns with Xaxis’ goal to deliver better outcomes while advancing programmatic across all media, and I have no doubt she will be an integral part of our team in helping us to reach a new level of service.”