Copenhagen, November 6, 2023

Leadership transition at Merkle Northern Europe 

After having completed his goal of building an international customer experience business, CEO Martin Bochineck has decided to resign. From January 1st 2024, Chief Growth Officer Bobby Hollingsworth will succeed him as President of Merkle Northern Europe (NE).

Martin Bochineck founded Magnetix at the threshold of the millennium and over two decades, grown it into Merkle NE with +750 employees across Northern Europe. From the early days to the dentsu group acquisition in 2016, Bochineck held key positions including Global President of the agency isobar, EMEA Lead for Experience and Commerce, and most recently Merkle NE CEO.

Established Merkle leader takes the reins

With more than 15 years of experience driving global digital agencies as well as long-standing experience within the dentsu group, Bobby Hollingsworth is the natural candidate to continue Merkle’s growth story and lead dentsu towards its 2030 vision of creating sustainable societal transformation. He has been the leader of Isobar Melbourne’s Australia office, the CEO of Isobar Nordics, the Chief Growth Officer at Merkle NE, and his passion for customer experience has been crucial for winning some of Merkle EMEA’s largest new business wins over the past 3 years.

Bobby Hollingsworth, incoming Merkle President for Northern Europe said: “I'm honoured to take on the role of NE President for Merkle. Our organization is world-class, thanks in no small part to Martin's visionary leadership spanning 23 remarkable years. I can't thank him enough for his invaluable guidance during our close collaboration over the last six years. I've always been passionate about helping our clients achieve exceptional results from their digital CX investments, and I'm eager to continue working with our outstanding team to foster creativity and innovation, especially important for me in times where operational efficiency is more in focus that ever," says the incoming President.

Ulrik Petersen, dentsu’s CEO in Denmark, continues: ”I’ve had the pleasure and privilege to work together with Martin for the last 16 years. I have the greatest respect for his leadership and what he has brought to our business – and I wish him all the best in the future. Now, I really look forward to working with Bobby to continue our growth and make sure that our people value us as the number 1 choice in terms of well-being, development and performance”.

Merkle has established itself in the Nordics as a digital transformation leader through its track record of award-winning solutions. Even with a new leader at the helm, Merkle NE's primary focus remains unwavering: to continue crafting meaningful customer experiences for its diverse portfolio of global clients. The new President's top priority will be to harness the power of cross-industry and vertical expertise to further strengthen and integrate dentsu.

Margaret Wagner, Merkle’s EMEA President said “Bobby is an excellent successor for Martin who has done a great job in helping to build our Merkle business in Northern Europe. Bobby understands our business, our clients and what’s needed to further partner with brands to deliver a seamless customer experience. With our continued focus on bringing together creativity, technology and data, Bobby’s experience makes him perfectly placed to lead our Northern European business into the next phase of our growth.

For interview requests, or more information about One dentsu and the vision to be at the forefront of people-centred and society-shaping transformations, please reach out to:

Incoming President NE, Bobby.Hollingsworth@merkle.com +45 2772 4817

Departing CEO Martin.Bochineck@merkle.com +45 2620 2332

CEO dentsu, Denmark: ulrik.petersen@dentsu.com +45 6038 2899

CMO Michael.Chalmer@merkle.com +45 2791 9292

About Merkle

Merkle, a dentsu company, is a leading data-driven customer experience management (CXM) company that specializes in the delivery of unique, personalized customer experiences across platforms and devices. For more than 30 years, Fortune 1000 companies and leading nonprofit organizations have partnered with Merkle to maximize the value of their customer portfolios. The company's heritage in data, technology, and analytics forms the foundation for its unmatched skills in understanding consumer insights that drive hyper-personalized marketing strategies. Its combined strengths in consulting, creative, media, analytics, data, identity, CX/commerce, technology, and loyalty & promotions drive improved marketing results and competitive advantage. Merkle has more than 16,000 employees in 30+ countries throughout the Americas, EMEA, and APAC. For more information, contact Merkle at 1-877-9-Merkle or visit www.merkle.com.