Charles Cadell to step down as McCann Worldgroup APAC president

Charles Cadell is to step down as McCann Worldgroup Asia-Pacific president by the end of the year. The news was first reported by Mumbrella Asia.

In a statement in response to an enquiry from Campaign, McCann Worldgroup confirmed that Alex Lubar, CEO of McCann Worldgroup's London office, would succeed Cadell in the regional role.

“It should be no surprise that McCann Worldgroup always looks for career opportunities for our best people and when Charles Cadell approached [McCann Worldgroup chairman and CEO] Harris Diamond about the idea of transitioning from his regional role over the next year, Alex Lubar was the obvious choice," the statement said. "He will be relocating to the region before the end of the year.”

A spokesperson for McCann in Tokyo, where Cadell is based, said the company was not able to say any more on the transition at this time. [See update below]

Cadell is among the most experienced agency leaders in APAC. He has been with McCann in the region for the past eight years, initially based in Singapore as Southeast Asia and Australasia head, before becoming APAC president in 2012 and then relocating to Tokyo in 2016 to also lead McCann Worldgroup Japan. 

Before that, he was CEO of Lowe Lintas in India for three years, and spent 11 years at Leo Burnett in Malaysia, Hong Kong and Thailand. 

Lubar has spent three years leading the London operations, having moved from the role of McCann Worldgroup global CMO. He previously worked at Grey and BBH.

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Update, May 29: 

McCann issued a statement saying that Lubar will be based in Singapore and that Cadell will work through "a transition period". Sheryl Marjoram, previously managing director of McCann London, will succeed Lubar as CEO there. The statement added that Lubar will work closely with Prasoon Joshi, who serves as APAC chairman as well as CEO and CCO of McCann Worldgroup India. The statement included the following quotes:

Diamond:

As we look to build further on the Asia Pacific region’s momentum, Alex has demonstrated in his London leadership role that he has the vision and energy to drive multiplatform growth and creativity on behalf of our mix of global, regional and local clients. We thank Charles for this contribution and are pleased he will continue to support the region and transition.

Joshi:

Asia Pacific is where the new areas of growth, innovative thinking and exciting change are taking place in societies and markets. McCann Asia Pacific is a force to reckon with not just regionally but globally and we are extremely well positioned for continued growth. I am more than positive that with Alex in the region, we are going to leverage opportunities even more effectively. Having worked together as part of our global team, I truly look forward to building on the momentum we’ve seen across the network.

Lubar:

Having worked with my colleagues in Asia Pacific when I was global CMO and on shared worldwide accounts while in London, I am excited to be joining that diverse and dynamic region. So many of the agencies in the APAC region have come to global prominence for creativity and effectiveness in recent years, and the integrated multidiscipline offering has become very strong.