NEW YORK: DeVries Global has appointed Love Whelchel as its first chief talent officer for its global network.
He joined the agency on November 18.
Whelchel, who previously served as chief HR officer for rapper Sean Combs' Bad Boy Worldwide Entertainment Group, is reporting directly to DeVries Global chairman Jim Allman.
Based in New York, Whelchel is focusing on helping DeVries find and retain talent. His HR experience includes staffing, employee orientation, management development, employee and labor relations, regulatory compliance, compensation and benefits administration, organization development, and employee assistance.
Before joining Bad Boy two years ago, Whelchel held several recruiting and HR roles in the advertising industry, including as a recruiter at Chiat Day in Los Angeles and as chief talent officer at Young & Rubicam.
In addition, DeVries has brought on Katherine Ricci as VP of social planning.
Ricci, who started in the newly created role on November 11, is reporting to Adrianna Giuliani, MD of creative and strategic services at DeVries. Guiliani was promoted to her current role earlier this fall.
Ricci's main tasks include working on the firm's Procter & Gamble account, as well as on some of its food and beverage businesses.
Prior to joining DeVries, Ricci worked at social media agency Attention, where she led work on an array of lifestyle brands, such as Hard Rock Hotel Las Vegas, Red Stripe beer, and Mattel's Monster High toy line.
Ricci has also worked in Ketchum's technology practice, serving clients such as IBM, AMD, and Kodak.
In July, DeVries North America CEO Stephanie Smirnov stepped down from her role to join Edelman as MD of consumer marketing. Allman is serving as interim CEO of North America until the firm replaces Smirnov. Laura Pesin, president and COO of North America at DeVries, is reporting to Allman.
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