Maja Pawinska Sims 18 Feb 2019 // 9:59AM GMT
LONDON — Frankie Cory has resigned from Mischief, and will leave the creative consumer shop this July, after five years as chief executive of the Engine Group PR agency.
The announcement came as Engine continues its restructuring to an integrated model. The group has already phased out many of its agency brands across other disciplines and, while it said that its PR brands – Mischief and public affairs agency MHP Communications – would continue for the time being, it is thought they will be phased out sooner rather than later.
Cory, who was known for “leading from the heart,” joined Mischief in January 2014 from the CEO role at Citizen Relations. Her previous roles included joint MD at Frank, creative director at Cohn & Wolfe, and head of PR for fashion brand Joe Bloggs.
At Mischief, which now has around 70 staffers, Cory put a planning and creative team in place in 2015, and built a strong culture with an emphasis on “work-life blend,” ranging from sabbaticals and experience days, to supporting the team’s interests and responsibilities out of work.
She also nurtured talent: 90% of Mischief’s account directors joined on its graduate scheme or as assistant account executives, and account director and creative Andy Garner and strategist Daniella Graham represented the UK in Cannes last year as winners of the UK Young Lions competition.
Cory said: “It’s been an incredible five years and I’ve been privileged to work with some of the best people in the industry on some of the best brands in the world. I walk away proud of everything we’ve achieved and know I leave the agency in the safe hands of an incredibly talented leadership team.”
The Academy co-founder and CEO Mitch Kaye, who founded Mischief in 2006 before selling the agency to Engine Group in 2011 and recruiting Cory to succeed him, told the Holmes Report: “Frankie has done an incredible job at Mischief since she arrived. She has built her own team, led in her own way, and stayed true to the spirit of the brand throughout. She is one of the most impressive people in the business, and whatever she does next will be a success.”
Engine Group said in a statement that under Cory’s tenure “the agency has built an enviable client portfolio and won numerous clients and awards. As Engine has looked to evolve its structure to better serve its clients, Mischief has moved to sit within the ‘Engine Communications’ pillar of the business, alongside Engine’s other consultancy, MHP.”
Jim Moffatt, chief executive of Engine in Europe, added: “Frankie has achieved some amazing things in her five years at the helm of Mischief. Under her leadership the agency has consistently created famous and effective work – it’s not surprising their awards cabinet is bursting at the seams. I would like to thank Frankie for her invaluable contribution to Mischief and the wider Engine business.”
A search for Cory’s replacement is underway.