Who will be the next Saatchi & Saatchi boss?

The question on everyone’s lips at yesterday’s Campaign Brief Legendary Lunch at Rocco’s in Ponsonby was, who will take over from Andrew ‘Rocky’ Stone as CEO of Saatchi & Saatchi?

One source says it’s a New York-based expat Kiwi female executive, at one time at Ogilvy New York and Sydney, who has not lived in New Zealand for 15 years. The other talked about is Mike Rebelo (left), a former suit at Saatchi’s Wellington and ex CEO of Saatchi Singapore, who is now CEO of Saatchi & Saatchi, London. However, CB doubts that he’d be interested in moving back to a much smaller shop in Auckland, as Rebelo is enjoying getting the London office back on track.

Stone departs today, along with ECD Mike O’Sullivan, leaving an agency rudderless and very low on morale, with a queue of key executives, according to other agency CEO’s, looking elsewhere.