Magna creates new global role overseeing digital partnerships and media responsibility

IPG-owned Magna created a new global role that will be charged with overseeing media responsiblity as the ad world looks to diversify its media spend and re-evaluate media strategies. Mediabrands vet Elijah Harris has been appointed exec VP, global digital partnerships and media responsiblity, joining Magna from sibling agency Reprise. At the performance marketing agency he served as global head of social. “I truly believe down to my core, advertisers have a role in creating safer online spaces for everyone, not just for the brands we represent,” says Harris. In his new executive-level position, he’ll act as a “conduit that sits between our global platform partners and our client teams,” Harris says, melding Mediabrands’ core values with those of their clients’ market base. “All in all, that was a long-winded way of saying I’ll be an advocate of the industry,” Harris says, noting that his new title is a merger of two of his greatest professional passions. An employee of Mediabrands entities since 2015, he adds that having “six years within the network” has given him ample time to cultivate relationships across the company. “Eli brings a passion and rigor for the digital landscape, social and data insights, as well as how to best leverage global platforms for our clients,” says Magna’s U.S. President Dani Benowitz, citing Harris’ expertise as a “collaborative leader with an entrepreneurial spirit” as being key to his success at Magna. Harris will report directly to Benowitz. Harris brings to Magna nearly 10 years of experience in both the U.S. and Asia-Pacific digital industries, accumulated during tenures including a handful of social-forward roles within Mediabrands and an earlier Australia-based stint in Dentsu Aegis’ Asia-Pacific division. “Through and through, I am a digital media buyer. I have spent hours and hours of my training actually executing on these various platforms,” says Harris, who’s typically based in New York.

Magna creates new global role overseeing digital partnerships and media responsibility

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