The ICA has added a new leadership position to improve how client-side procurement and agencies communicate.
Leah Power has joined the organization as EVP, agency operations. Power was most recently chief operating officer at Grey Canada, having been promoted from a dual role as VP, director of finance in both the agency’s Toronto and San Francisco offices. (She left Grey in April, with her responsibilities being assumed by Patrice Landry, the shop’s CFO.)
The new role at the ICA was created to help agencies move away from hourly rates and closer to improved value propositions, says Scott Knox, president and CEO. Given her roles at Grey and DDB Canada (where she was first controller and then finance director), Power was the right fit, he says.
Power is tasked with helping agency executives resolve business issues related to new business growth, finances, procurement and compensation. So far, that’s included early discussions with the Association of Canadian Advertisers and the procurement trade body, the Supply Chain Management Association.
Power’s onboarding is among the first moves the ICA is making as it aims to deliver more insight for agencies and help them build out their business strategies, Knox says.
The organization recently revamped its mission and branding, though it’s been making what it sees as proper procurement practices core to its offering over the past year, including through the launch of its Pitch Watchdog program.
