Stephen Whyte joins headhunter

Stephen Whyte, the former McCann Erickson chief executive, is joining headhunting company JCA Group as partner. Whyte will join the group next week.

It is thought that Whyte is joining the headhunter to strengthen its advertising and marketing services teams. Whyte left McCann Erickson in January this year without a job to go to, ruling out another another agency job (MW.co.uk, January 8).

JCA is a board level headhunting company set up by former Coca-Cola marketing chief Jan Hall in 2005. It handled the search for the successor to Stephen Carter as chief executive of Ofcom.

Whyte joined the Interpublic-owned agency in 2002 as European client services director, and was promoted to chief executive of McCann Erickson London in 2004 by the network’s then regional director Rupert Howell, now managing director of brand and commercial at ITV.

Previously, Whyte was chief executive of Leo Burnett. He has also worked at Leagas Delaney and Abbott Mead Vickers.BBDO. Both Whyte and Hall were unavailable for comment.