NEW YORK — Omnicom PR Group has tapped former BCW New York president Jillian Janaczek to lead Porter Novelli as the firm’s new CEO.

Janaczek spent nearly 25 years at BCW (and its predecessor Cohn & Wolfe) before leaving the agency in May.

Janaczek was named leader of BCW's operation in New York (the largest global market) in 2018, following BCW’s rollout as an integrated combination of Burson-Marsteller and Cohn & Wolfe.  Her appointment as executive VP, managing director and market leader followed a roughly 20-year career with Cohn & Wolfe, which included spending more than a decade as healthcare managing director.

OPRG CEO Chris Foster said he is very “optimistic and excited” about Janaczek taking the helm of Porter Novelli, noting that in addition to being a skilled client counselor she puts a “tremendous” focus on people.

“She is incredibly effective at leading and inspiring teams,” Foster said.

Foster said he doesn’t foresee any notable change to Porter Novelli’s operations in the near future. “Right now, we have a strong leadership team, we are strong in the regions and our practices are performing well,” he said.

Janaczek replaces David Bentley, a former McKinsey VP who departed Porter Novelli in June after three years in the CEO role. She will be the third CEO that Porter Novelli has had in less than four years.

Bentley, who assumed the role in March 2020, succeeded Brad MacAfee, who stepped down as CEO in December 2019. He had been with Porter Novelli for roughly 15 years when he assumed the job in 2016. MacAfee's tenure saw the firm shift to a new positioning focused on its heritage in terms of purpose, following its merger with sister firm Cone Communications.

Photo: Wendy Moynihan Photography