Jay Bingle, the worldwide chairman and chief executive of Impiric, is leaving the agency just four months after WPP completed its purchase of Impiric's parent company, Young & Rubicam.
Bingle is thought to have been told to leave after a meeting with the WPP chief executive, Martin Sorrell. WPP recently announced cost-saving measures that include the loss of 100 jobs at the New York offices of Y&R. The company is now seeking a new head for the Impiric network.
Bingle joined Impiric, then known as Wunderman Cato Johnson, in April 1998 after Y&R acquired his company Capital Consultancy and Research.
He led Impiric's move from being a traditional direct marketing agency toward an integrated marketing services provider offering internet, database management, telemarketing and consulting services.
However, the rebranding of WCJ to Impiric in March has not had the impact that Y&R desired. Although Impiric remains the second-largest marketing services group in the world, behind its WPP sister agency, OgilvyOne, its 1999 US revenues increased at a slower rate than those of its rivals.
WPP is said to be unhappy with Bingle because of the name change and the general direction of Impiric. One agency source said: 'WPP holds him (Bingle) accountable for the name change. If it were possible to reverse it, WPP would.'
Mike Dolan, Y&R's chairman and CEO, was unavailable for comment.
Impiric's clients include Ericsson, Ford and Citibank. Its UK management team, led by the UK managing director, Richard Bagnall-Smith, has not been changed.
Impiric has been exploring ways of working more closely with Y&R and other group companies, both in the US and other markets. It recently began a search for a senior executive to integrate it with other group units.
