LONDON — Grayling global CEO Sarah Scholefield has been promoted to lead the agency’s parent company, Accordience Group, as chief executive from December this year.

Accordience, which was rebranded from Huntsworth Communications last year, is made up of Grayling, Citigate Dewe Rogerson, Red Consultancy and Cirkle, which it bought in April 2022.

At the time of the rebrand, Scholefield was named as CEO alongside her Grayling role. She now takes on the role full-time after a period of growth across the group, including new business wins as a combined offer across its four agencies.

Dickie Jukes, who is currently executive chairman of Grayling, will take over as global CEO. Tom Symondson, global head of growth for Grayling and Accordience, will be joining Scholefield in a full-time Accordience role. Both Scholefield and Symondson will focus on growing and leading the group – including a soon-to-be-launched group ESG offer – alongside group CFO Will Thompson.

Accordience chairman Neil Jones said: “We see these changes as evidence of how much we have achieved since we established Accordience in mid-2022, and how the scale of that success now needs 100% focus from a designated leadership team. With this new structure in place, the Group can continue to build on this success. Accordience offers best-in-class, specialist services both individually and, increasingly, in combination across the Group with the ability to scale from local to global at pace.”

Scholefield added: “It is a great honour to lead the Accordience Group in partnership with [Red CEO] Mike Morgan, [Cirkle CEO] Ruth Kieran, [Citigate global CEO] Charlotte Bilney and Dickie Jukes, alongside Will, Tom and Neil. Through our collaborative approach, we have built a formidable group in a short period of time and we have bold and ambitious plans for the future.

“I am enormously proud of all that was achieved while I was at Grayling but know it is in very good hands under the stewardship of Dickie.”

Scholefield last year also served as chair of the PRCA, and was recently appointed as its first honorary president.