Vittorio Bonori Appointed Publicis Groupe Italy CEO

Publicis Groupe [Euronext Paris FR0000130577, CAC 40] announced today the appointment of Vittorio Bonori to Publicis Groupe Italy CEO, effective January 2019, reporting to Gerry Boyle, CEO of Publicis Media EMEA & APAC, who also serves in a Publicis Groupe Southern Europe leadership role. Bonori replaces Emanuele Saffirio who has decided to leave the company to pursue other opportunities. In addition to his Publicis Groupe Italy remit, Bonori will continue to serve on the Publicis Media executive leadership team led by Steve King, CEO, Publicis Media.

Bonori’s new role will include oversight of all Publicis Groupe hubs in Italy, spanning agencies across Publicis Communications, Publicis Media and Publicis.Sapient.

Spending nearly two-decades in leadership roles at Publicis Groupe, Bonori most recently served as Global Brand President of Zenith. Prior, he served as CEO of ZenithOptimedia Italy, South Mediterranean, Middle East & Africa. Under his charge, Zenith revamped its global proposition to deliver ROI+. It was also awarded numerous accolades for its leading work and capabilities including Forrester naming the network a “Leader” in The Forrester Wave™: Global Media Agencies, Q3 2018 report, as well as Campaign recognizing Zenith as one of the most influential agencies of the past 50 years, giving it the highest media agency ranking on the list.

“I would like to thank Emanuele for his many contributions to Publicis Groupe Italy. He shared with us his wishes to move on to a new challenge. We are grateful he gave us the time to identify the right successor and to stay on through the transition. We warmly wish him every success in his future endeavors,” says Boyle. “As for Vittorio, he is a proven leader and innovator, committed to his clients and teams. He will be an exceptional, transformational partner for our clients and talent as we continue to unlock the Power of One.”

"I’ve always thought that Publicis Groupe is the best holding company in the communications world. I am even more convinced now, after I had the opportunity to get to know better the Groupe, its vision and its great talents." says Saffirio. "It has not been an easy decision to leave, but I consider myself an entrepreneur and was missing the exhilaration of running my own business. I am delighted by the Groupe’s choice to succeed me. Vittorio is an excellent leader to run Publicis in Italy."

“I’m excited to take on this post, returning to the market where my Publicis Groupe career began and where I served as an agency leader for many years,” says Bonori. “I look forward to working with the talented team and clients across the Groupe in my new role.”

Bonori will be based in Milan. He and Saffirio will work closely together on Publicis Groupe Italy’s transition over the coming months. A successor will be named to the Zenith Global Brand President role in the coming weeks.