- Horizon Media Holdings, the parent of agency Horizon Media, has named Bob Lord as its first president, per details shared with Marketing Dive. Lord, a former IBM executive, will report back to Horizon founder and CEO Bill Koenigsberg.
- Lord worked for nearly a decade at IBM, serving as the corporate’s first chief digital officer, and handled tasks including the combination of artificial intelligence (AI) across its applications. Prior to IBM, he was president of AOL and global CEO of Razorfish.
- At Horizon, Lord will oversee the event and alignment of the agency’s various businesses, including its newly instituted promoting offering, One Horizon, along with full-service agency Horizon Next, multicultural agency 305 and more.
Lord involves Horizon at a pivotal time for each the agency and industry at large. Horizon is the world’s largest independent media agency and has recently expanded into recent areas, including launching a full-service creative offering just weeks ago. Agencies are also tasked with mastering technology where Lord brings a wealth of experience, such as implementing AI.
“[Bob’s] accomplishments across technology, innovation, and business transformation make him the perfect leader to drive Horizon Holdings forward,” said Horizon CEO Koenigsberg in an announcement. ”I look ahead to working with him to make sure we remain agile, forward-thinking, and deeply attuned to the voice of our clients, redefining what it means to be an independent, tech-centered, and people-first organization.”
The agency space is ready for large disruption within the wake of Omnicom’s proposed acquisition of Interpublic Group for $13 billion. The joining of two giants is more likely to reshape the landscape for smaller networks and independents. Some could go on merger and acquisition sprees to higher compete while clients may look to more modestly sized shops as they demand simplicity.
Horizon could stand to realize from the Omnicom and IPG agreement, which is anticipated to shut within the second half of the 12 months. Having someone with Lord’s marketing and technology bona fides is more likely to be useful as things begin to shake out.
Lord, a 30-year industry veteran, is tasked with driving innovation for Horizon along with overseeing its portfolio and developing businesses across each of its offices. The executive may also handle international strategy. Other agencies under Horizon’s portfolio include sports and experiential agency HS&E, social-led content shop Blue Hour Studios, commerce agency Night Market and business-to-business practice Green Thread.
Before joining Horizon, Lord stepped away from the marketing and media landscape to tackle leadership roles within the technology space. As chief digital officer at IBM, he helped spearhead tasks around AI, altered the corporate’s go-to-market strategy and divested core units, including The Weather Company, to higher align with IBM’s business strategy.
Prior to his time at IBM, Lord was president of AOL, where he led the event of its programmatic media platform. Lord also previously served as the worldwide CEO of Razorfish, guiding the agency as it became a pacesetter in digital marketing and was acquired by Publicis Groupe.
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