Weber Shandwick president Andy Polansky promoted to chief executive

'It's a great privilege to lead a great company, and it's an exciting time of opportunity for our business,' said Polansky. 'I've worked with [Diamond] closely for the past 15 years, and this is part of a long-planned management transition here.'

Polansky, who will be in charge of approximately 2,500 staffers worldwide, added that he sees 'great opportunity' to grow the business globally. Chairman Jack Leslie will continue in his role at Weber Shandwick.

Polansky has worked at Weber and its predecessor agencies for about three decades, previously overseeing the New York office, North America, and various regions and client relationships.

Interpublic did not immediately name a replacement for Diamond as CEO of the Constituency Management Group unit, the holding company which owns and operates PR agenciys Weber Shandwick, GolinHarris and DeVries. The agencies housed in the group will report directly to IPG's leadership for the time being.

Diamond was appointed CEO of Weber Shandwick in 2001. Two years later, he assumed oversight of most of the holding company's PR agencies in its Constituency Management Group.

Last month, Diamond told PRWeek US that IPG's PR firms saw organic revenue growth of 5.9% in the third quarter of 2012, compared with the same period of the previous year.

CMG reported a third-quarter organic revenue increase of 14% to £212.7 million ($337.9 million), year-over-year. In the first nine months of 2012, the unit reported revenue of £562.3 million ($893.2 million), up 10.4% organically compared with the same period of 2011.

'I've had the best years of my professional life at Weber Shandwick. It's a great company and a great group of people. It will be terrific with Andy Polansky at the helm,' Diamond told PRWeek US. 'Today's world is moving toward integration, and that's something I've always believed in strongly. I will continue that approach at McCann.'

Polansky has also served as chairman of the Council of PR Firms for the past two years. He is a member of the board of trustees of the Institute for Public Relations.

Interpublic also assigned Luca Lindner and Gustavo Martinez broader mandates within McCann. They will serve with Diamond in a newly created, three-person chairmanship at the ad agency. 

This article was first published on prweekus.com