NEW YORK (January 2, 2019) – McCann Health today announced that Matt Eastwood has been named Global Chief Creative Officer of McCann Health, a leading worldwide professional and consumer healthcare communications network with top-ranked practices spanning marketing, medical communications, and scientific consulting. Eastwood, most recently Worldwide Chief Creative Officer at J. Walter Thompson Co., brings a track record of all-around creative leadership to a growing health and wellness industry sector where both consumer and professional communications are increasingly embracing the global and digital expertise shared by all marketers.
“Matt is an immense talent, but an even better human. He is exactly the kind of global creative leader we need at this moment to continue McCann Health’s growth and commitment to do meaningful work for our brand partners,” said Rob Reilly, Global Creative Chairman of McCann Worldgroup.
Eastwood’s career has spanned numerous agencies, specialties and countries, including Australia, the UK and US. He has been Executive Creative Director at M&C Saatchi both in Melbourne and London before moving to the US as Chief Creative Officer at Y&R New York. He then moved to Sydney as DDB’s Vice Chairman and National Creative Director in Australia and then joined DDB New York as Chief Creative Officer before leaving for JWT in 2014. In 2016, he led JWT to an historic year at Cannes, winning a total of 80 Lions, more than the agency had ever won in their 150-year history.
In taking on his creative leadership role at McCann Health, Eastwood joins a network that has been recognized as a global creative leader. In 2017, it won an unprecedented total of three Network of the Year titles from the industry’s top three creative award shows — at the Clio Health awards, at the London International Awards, and for the second year in a row at the Cannes Lions Health Awards.
“Our health, wellness, and pharma clients across the board are increasingly looking at a changing landscape in which Matt’s broad background and sterling creative reputation will be of great relevance and value,” said John Cahill, Global CEO of McCann Health. “The challenges and opportunities they are facing are consistent with those running across all of marketing, including the more empowered health consumer, the evolving health delivery system, and the growing influence of data-led marketing.”
During his career Eastwood has led his agencies to numerous creative honors, including Clio Health Network of the Year as well as Campaign Brief Agency of the Year, Australian Creative Hotshop, Adnews Agency of the Year, Creativity’s Agency to Watch, B&T Agency of the Year, Spikes Network of the Year, and Campaign magazine Network of the Year.
Said Matt Eastwood: “I’ve been impressed for some time with the creative renaissance that Rob Reilly and his teams have brought to all of McCann Worldgroup. And like many in the business, I’ve been especially aware of some of the outstanding and meaningful creative work that McCann Health in particular has been doing around the world befitting their reputation as one of the world’s most awarded global healthcare communications companies. I am so pleased to be joining this winning team.”
McCann Health, which has 60 offices across 20 countries over 6 continents, last year expanded its services with the launch of a first-of-its-kind Global Scientific Council that added a third pillar of scientific prowess to its existing capabilities in strategy and creativity. Launched with approximately 20 of McCann Health’s top PhDs and Scientists, it serves as a leadership platform for developing the agency’s connected global scientific community and complements McCann Health’s other global practices that include strategic consultancy, healthcare professional marketing, medical communications, consumer health and wellness, global health, pharmacy engagement, managed markets and patient engagement.
McCann Worldgroup, part of the Interpublic Group (NYSE: IPG), is a leading global marketing services company with over 20,000 employees in more than 100 countries, comprising McCann Erickson (advertising), MRM//McCann (digital marketing/relationship management), Momentum Worldwide (total brand experience), McCann Health (professional/dtc communications), CRAFT (production), Weber Shandwick (public relations), FutureBrand (consulting/design), and PMK-BNC (entertainment/brand/popular culture.
