Matt Eastwood has been named McCann Health’s new global chief creative officer.
The move saw Eastwood leave a similar position at J. Walter Thompson (JWT), a marketing communications agency that recently announced it will merge with WPP’s digital agency Wunderman.
Eastwood served at JWT for almost five years, but has long been in the agency sector, previously working for groups such as DDB New York and Saatchi & Saatchi.
At McCann Health the new role will see Eastwood take on a creative leadership role, and according to the group’s chief exec John Cahill, his “broad background and sterling creative reputation will be of great relevance and value” to its portfolio of health, wellness and pharma clients.
Rob Reilly, Global Creative Chairman of McCann Worldgroup, said: “Matt is an immense talent, but an even better human. He is exactly the kind of global creative leader we need at this moment to continue McCann Health’s growth and commitment to do meaningful work for our brand partners.”
The company has been searching for a candidate since July last year, after its former chief creative officer Jeremy Perrot was dismissed following an investigation that found him in violation of its code of conduct.
Eastwood said: “I’ve been impressed for some time with the creative renaissance that Rob Reilly and his teams have brought to all of McCann World Group. And like many in the business, I’ve been especially aware of some of the outstanding and meaningful creative work that McCann Health in particular has been doing around the world, befitting their reputation as one of the world’s most awarded global healthcare communications companies.”
Eastwood joins McCann’s New York hub, which is just one of 60 offices spanning across 20 countries.
Last year the group announced it has launched a global scientific council, which aims to offer evidence-based science to its pharma and healthcare clients.