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By Elizabeth Howcroft
LONDON, Jan 7 (Reuters) - Data analytics company Kantar has
appointed Ian Griffiths as its new chief financial officer,
bringing the former senior ITV executive to the group as
it begins life under new owner Bain Capital.
Griffiths, who spent 10 years at ITV and previously worked
for publisher Emap, will join Kantar on Jan. 16, replacing
Robert Bowtell who had been in the role since 2001.
During his time at ITV, Britain's biggest free-to-air
commercial broadcaster, Griffiths helped to reduce the company's
reliance on volatile advertising revenue by building its online
and production business, during a tough decade for the industry.
The announcement comes at a turning point for Kantar: in
December private equity group Bain completed its purchase of a
60% stake in the group, while former owner WPP retained
the rest.
Long-time chief executive, Eric Salama, also said in
December that he would step down during 2020. He told the
Financial Times this was a personal decision after he was
stabbed in an attempted carjacking in London in January
2019.
Salama said Griffiths, who is 53, would bring a wealth of
experience to Kantar, which provides data and analytics on
consumers in more than 100 countries.
"His track record in dealing with public markets and
delivering strong returns for shareholders, both as CFO and COO,
will be important to Kantar as we embark on the next stage of
our growth journey," he said.
(Reporting by Elizabeth Howcroft, Editing by Kate Holton)
