Edelman, the leading global communications marketing firm, announces today that Martin Montoya has been named CEO of the company's operations in Brazil. He also assumes oversight of Zeno, part of the Daniel J. Edelman group, in the country.
Montoya comes from WMcCann, where he served as President since 2011. With 27 years in the communications industry, he has had the opportunity to work with large multi-national accounts such as Procter & Gamble, American Express, Unilever, J&J, Nestlé, Mastercard, L'Oreal, Coca-Cola, General Mills and others, as well as Brazilian companies which include TIM, Bradesco Bank, Seara, Deca and Ri-Happy. Before WMcCann, Montoya was Managing Director at J. Walter Thompson in Brazil, where he drove the process of transforming the agency into a highly digital operation. His first assignment in Brazil was leading the Unilever Account at Lowe, where he became Managing Director of that Account across Latin America and Global Brand Director of the Omo Brand.
“With such robust agency leadership background, strong relationships both globally and in the country, and a deep understanding of the challenges our industry is facing, Martin was the perfect choice for CEO”, said Allan McCrea Steele, CEO of Edelman Latin America. “He will work to continue the expansion of our footprint in this key global market, reinforcing our positioning as a leading global agency with deep local roots, while advancing our integrated offering to clients.”
Montoya’s professional background, will help strengthen Edelman's communications marketing model, which combines the competences of PR and Marketing with an integrated set of offerings including planning, creativity, paid media, research and analytics.
"Over the past few years, my energy has been mainly focused in trying to modernize and integrate the services and strategic counsel which a true communications partner should offer its clients today. It has proven difficult to change long established paradigms in our industry, but it is clear to me that Edelman is globally committed to this same purpose and has already been acting beyond the borders of traditional PR," said Montoya. "I believe that the company's strong strategic heritage, added to my broader experience and commitment to integration will contribute to a synergy of disciplines and the ability to address the current needs of our clients," he added.
Montoya succeeds Yacoff Sarkovas in Edelman Brazil’s leadership. Sarkovas has been at the forefront of Edelman's and Zeno's operations in Brazil for the past seven years, leaving a significant legacy to the agency, employees and the market. He will continue to support Edelman Brazil as an external senior consultant.