DigitasLBi promotes Michael Islip to UK CEO and Anil Pillai becomes UK, Middle East & Africa chief
DigitasLBi has promoted UK managing director Michael Islip to the role of UK chief executive, replacing Anil Pillai who will take on the newly created role of chief of the UK, Middle East and Africa.
Islip, who has been in his current role since 2012, will take up the role with immediate effect
He will report to Pillai, who has been UK chief for the last four years, and will now oversee the Middle East & Africa regions as well.
Islip will be responsible for helping decide what’s next for key clients, as well as forging new partnerships with some of the UK’s most ambitious brands.
Meanwhile Pillai will broaden his focus beyond the UK and will lead large pitch opportunities to grow the agency’s footprint in the Middle East and Africa. He will work with high-growth potential clients and identify acquisitions along with attracting new talent into the business, reporting to international chief executive Ewen Sturgeon.
Pillai said: “Having overseen the evolution of DigitasLBi into one of the UK’s leading agencies, the time is now right to take on an exciting new challenge. I can’t wait to start leveraging the expertise of the UK business to drive growth, champion creativity and instil DigitasLBi’s collaborative culture across our emerging Middle East and African markets.”
Islip added: “I’m really excited to be taking on the role of chief executive as 2015 is going to be a big year for us. We’re going to continue developing our capabilities as an agency and we’re going to be doing bigger and better things for our clients. Thanks to the way we blend data, creativity and technology means we’re better placed than anyone to help businesses transform.”
During his time at the helm of the UK business Pillai was responsible for growing the agency’s annual revenue to in excess of £100m.
He also expanded DigitasLBi’s family of brands to include Lost Boys, Kitcatt Nohr and DigitasLBi Commerce.
Islip, who joined DigitasLBi as client director in 2007, has played a dominant role in developing some of the agency’s biggest accounts including EON, Virgin Atlantic, Lloyds and Honda Europe.