Zhang was appointed president of MediaCom China in January 2006 and has been responsible for the agency’s strategic development, operations and growth. Under his stewardship, MediaCom have become the fourth largest agency in terms of media investment, according to RECMA.
“Michael will be building on his 19 years of experience with WPP agencies in his new role as chief strategy officer. This is a newly-created position which sits on the GroupM China Executive Committee and reports to me,” said Patrick Xu, CEO, GroupM China.
In this new role, Zhang will focus on the development and implementation of a new business model to expand the group’s business relationships and alliances in China, to further diversify the client base across the four agencies within the GroupM stable.
The search for a candidate to replace Michael is underway. In the interim period, Mark Heap, CEO of MediaCom APAC, will be taking on the role of acting CEO of MediaCom China.