The succession problem at Publicis Groupe lingers on. The company said today Maurice Lévy will continue as Publicis Groupe chairman-CEO until May or June 2017 – a few months after his 75th birthday. Publicis Chief Operating Officer Jean-Yves Naouri is no longer in the running for the post.
In a shakeup, the French communications giant has brought more talent to the senior management board, but continues to delay finding a successor for Mr. Lévy, who has been running Publicis since 1987.
Mr. Naouri was once seen as the frontrunner for Mr. Lévy's successor, but seems to have been a casualty of the failure of Publicis Groupe's proposed merger with Omnicom. It wasn't clear at press time whether Mr. Naouri will remain with the company.
New additions to the table are Arthur Sadoun, CEO of Publicis Worldwide; Laura Desmond, CEO of Starcom MediaVest Group; Steve King, CEO of ZenithOptimedia; and Rishad Tobaccowala (newly promoted from Chief Strategy Officerof VivaKi to chief strategist of Publicis Groupe).