WPP Appoints Tyler Turnbull as CEO of WPP Creative

WPP has appointed Tyler Turnbull as Chief Executive Officer of WPP Creative, with the incoming leader set to assume the role in early 2027. He will succeed Jon Cook as the advertising group works to strengthen collaboration across its creative agencies and broader marketing capabilities.

Turnbull joins WPP from McCann, where he currently serves as Global CEO. He brings extensive experience in agency leadership, client relationships and business transformation. Before joining McCann, he spent 12 years at FCB, holding leadership positions across Canada, North America and the global business.

In his new role, Turnbull will lead WPP Creative’s next phase, focusing on closer connections between its creative agency brands and the group’s capabilities in media, data, production, commerce and technology. The goal is to make these services more accessible to clients while maintaining the distinct identities of individual agencies.

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The appointment comes as advertising groups adapt to the growing influence of artificial intelligence in marketing. WPP plans to combine its creative expertise with its AI-powered platform, WPP Open, to connect data and insights with campaign development and execution.

WPP CEO Cindy Rose said Turnbull’s appointment reflects the company’s ambition to bring its capabilities together and place creativity at the centre of client growth.

Turnbull said he aims to build a more connected creative business while preserving the cultures of WPP’s agency brands and supporting creative talent.

His experience across international agency networks will be relevant as WPP seeks to align creative work more closely with technology, media and measurable business outcomes.

The leadership transition marks another step in WPP’s broader effort to simplify its operating structure and build a more integrated model for serving brands in an increasingly AI-influenced marketing environment.