Lauren Richards, CEO of Starcom MediaVest Group Canada, announced her resignation on Wednesday after four years at the helm of the agency.
In an interview with Marketing Friday afternoon, Richards joked that she is “a little frazzled” over all the attention since announcing her departure.
Richards confirmed she is leaving SMG for a new opportunity and that she’d likely only be at SMG for another week or so.
Since taking over in 2006, the agency has enjoyed strong growth and produced award-winning work for a handful of big-name clients such as P&G, Kraft, Diageo and more recently TD.
“I am really proud of everything we have accomplished and very proud of our track record–the awards, and recognition and the new business,” she said.
While Richards lost her husband earlier this year after a sudden illness, she stressed that was not a factor in her decision to leave SMG.
“The company is excellent with amazing people in leadership roles across the businesses and divisions” she said. “But a new opportunity presented itself that I just couldn’t ignore.”
“It’s obviously recent news, but the company as a whole is actively seeking a successor for the role,” said Anne Myers, president of MediaVest Canada. “We wish Lauren the best in her personal and professional pursuits. We have a strong community of top talent at both the MediaVest and SMG Toronto operations who will assist in the transition, with clients as our top priority.”
Richards began her career with Publicis-owned Leo Burnett before making stops at Vickers & Benson, Young & Rubicam, and the now-defunct Norman and Craig and Kummell before joining Cossette Media where she spent nearly 20 years working on clients including Bell, McDonald’s, Nike and Coca-Cola.
She left Cossette in 2005 took a year off before joining SMG Canada in 2006.
In a 2009 profile in Marketing, Starcom MediaVest Group worldwide CEO Laura Desmond described Richards as a “transformer” and “an innovator,” crediting her with revitalizing the agency with a string of senior level hires, including Myers.
While Richards declined to comment on the specifics of her next career move, speaking with Marketingfor the 2009 profile, Richards said she considered starting her own agency after leaving Cossette but decided she needed to stay with a large shop to produce truly innovative work. However, she also said she was also “disappointed” in herself for not having the courage to go out on her own.
