Iona Macgregor departs Saatchi & Saatchi for chief strategy officer role at whiteGREY

whiteGREY has announced the appointment of award-winning strategist Iona Macgregor to the role of chief strategy officer.  She also joins the agency’s executive leadership team and will work across the agency’s national and APAC client base.

Says Lee Simpson, CEO, whiteGREY: “We are really excited to welcome Iona to the agency. This is a critical role for us and one we’ve considered carefully. Iona’s experience will bring fresh strategic leadership to our business and our clients, adding to the depth of talent and capability we have across brand, communications, CX and media strategy.

“Iona is an innovative thinker suited to a creative agency with strong technology heritage, and I’m excited about the impact she will make.”

Most recently chief strategy officer at Saatchi & Saatchi Australia, Macgregor brings more than two decades of creative strategy experience driving currency, growth and impact for iconic global and local brands.  Clients include: Ampol, Arnott’s (Silver, Gold and Grand Effie winner 2023), AXA, Cartier, Heineken, Nestlé, NRMA, OPSM, Orange, Westpac group’s St.George, Ray-Ban, Tiger Beer and Vodafone.

Prior to Saatchi & Saatchi, Iona led hybrid strategy and innovation teams that brought together experts across brand, UX and social for multi-award-winning creative agency Marcel Worldwide in Paris from 2010, followed by becoming co-founder of Marcel Sydney in 2015.

On her new role Macgregor says: “This industry has been talking about transformational change for as long as I can remember.  But it takes a proper merge of creative, strategy, technology expertise and genuine care to deliver ideas that will set brands up for sustainable growth.

“The team at whiteGREY are just awesome.  I believe they’ve got a unique combination of all the skills and passion required to navigate this challenging market for their clients and I can’t wait to get started.”

Notable innovative ideas realised under Macgregor’s leadership include Intermarché’s Inglorious fruit & vegetables; Tiger Beer’s Air Ink and Donation Dollar for the Royal Australian mint.  Highly awarded at international creativity festivals such as Cannes Lions, Spikes, One Show, D&AD (2 Black Pencils), these impactful ideas continue to circulate in supermarkets, wallets and conversations today.