Post Office appoints RSA’s top marketer Pete Markey as CMO

The Post Office has appointed insurance group RSA’s top marketer Pete Markey into the newly created position of chief marketing officer.

Pete Markey
Pete Markey is joining the Post Office as CMO in May.

He will report into chief commercial officer Martin George, the former Bupa marketer who joined the company last year. Markey’s appointment means George’s role, previously chief marketing and commercial officer, will take more of a commercial slant.

Markey told Marketing Week he is moving into the “classic CMO role”, which encompasses a mixture of above the line, below the line, digital, social as well as supporting George with the wider commercial remit.

Markey said: “I’m really excited about this opportunity to bring a fresh perspective to marketing at The Post Office. It has 11,500 outlets in the UK and lots of customers walk through its doors every day – it really is a destination point.”

In 2012 The Post Office announced a £1.45bn overhaul of its network, aimed at improving the customer experience, which included the modernisation work of more than 6,000 branches. The work is expected to be complete by 2015.  http://www.marketingweek.co.uk/news/post-office-in-branch-overhaul/4000567.article

Markey leaves RSA in May after more than three years serving as the company’s chief marketing officer.  Outside of his day-to-day role, Markey recently completed The Marketing Academy’s inaugural Fellowship programme, which aims to equip top marketers with the skills to make the transition onto boards and into the CEO role.

An RSA spokesman told Marketing Week the business has not yet decided whether it will directly replace Markey, adding that it the insurer. currently reviewing the most appropriate central marketing structure for the business going forward.

Prior to joining RSA Markey was More Th>n’s marketing director and he also held marketing roles at Onetel, The AA and British Gas.

Pete Markey is sitting on a panel alongisde William Hill CMO Krisof Fahy, Britvic CMO Matthew Barwell and Pernod Ricard CMO Martin Riley on Thursday 3 April at Ad Week Europe. The panel, “Marketing Week Presents CMO 3.0”, will be chaired by Marketing Week editor Ruth Mortimer.

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