Jack Neary is joining BBDO Canada as executive vice-president, joint chief creative officer, and new partner for art director Michael McLaughlin.

For the past year, Neary has been senior vice-president, group creative director on the General Motors business at MacLaren McCann, Toronto.

He was senior vice-president, creative director at BBDO Vancouver for five months before that, a post he took on after 11 years as creative partner at Cossette Communication-Marketing, Toronto.

Neary replaces Stephen Creet, who broke up his 18-year creative partnership with McLaughlin to go solo as chief creative officer of Young & Rubicam’s San Francisco office.

Creet is working on projects for BBDO Canada until the end of the month and takes his new post July 1.

Creet is the writing half of an award-winning creative partnership with McLaughlin that began when they were teamed up at Vickers & Benson and continued through a move to MacLaren (now MacLaren McCann) and to BBDO in 1992.

The duo had shared the title of executive vice-president and joint chief creative officer of BBDO Canada since November 1996.

Creet will find a friendly face when he gets to Y&R – namely, Peter Stringham, chairman and ceo of Y&R North America and, until last November, president and ceo of BBDO Canada.

Two other BBDO creative types have also been lured south of the border.

Greg Rowan, who had been co-creative director at BBDO Vancouver, has moved to JWT West in San Francisco as senior vice-president, group creative director. Maureen Chan-Lay, creative manager at the Toronto office, will hold that same position when she joins JWT West next month.