Dentsu appoints Chris Ernst chief practice officer – media
Chris Ernst (Mumbrella)
Dentsu’s Queensland managing director Chris Ernst has been appointed chief practice officer – media, reporting directly to ANZ CEO Rob Harvey.
Ernst’s elevation to the Dentsu executive team comes after a successful six-year stint heading up the holdco’s Brisbane office, where he was described by his employer as “a key driver of performance and culture in the market”.
The appointment is the latest in a series of moves from Harvey, who was appointed ANZ CEO last August, having previously run the New Zealand Dentsu business for more than a decade. Harvey has rationalised his team — with the departures of Kirsty Muddle and Fiona Johnston who both had CEO titles — and told Mumbrella in December that Dentsu was “doing a lot of work in simplifying and flattening the structure, making sure that people are really clear about their roles and responsibilities”.
In the media release announcing Ernst’s appointment, Dentsu said the Queensland team had the highest internal engagement across Dentsu’s Australian agencies, and “record client NPS” (Net Promoter Score).
