Matt Adams to depart as Brainlabs global COO

Matt Adams, the global chief operating officer of Brainlabs, is to leave the digital media agency in March 2023.

Adams joined the agency in January 2020 from Havas, where he was chief executive, UK and Ireland, of Havas Media Group for nearly three and a half years.

A spokesperson for Brainlabs confirmed Adams' departure. They said: “Since joining the team back in January 2020, Matt has made a significant contribution to the growth of Brainlabs and we wish him well on his future endeavours.

“Whilst we look for a suitable successor, chief executive Daniel Gilbert and chairman Stephen Allan will work closely with Matt as he transitions his responsibilities over to them and the wider senior management team at Brainlabs.”

Adams declined to comment when approached by Campaign about his departure and there is no word on what he might do next.

He previously worked at Dentsu’s iProspect and WPP’s MEC, now known as Wavemaker.

His decision to quit Havas Media Group, an established agency network for Brainlabs, one of a new breed of digital performance marketing agencies, in 2020 was seen as a sign of the industry's changing fortunes.

At the time of Adams’ appointment, Gilbert, the founder and global CEO at Brainlabs, said: "He is what I would describe as hungry but humble and has a level of ambition that matches what we have for the business, which is to grow exponentially.”

Brainlabs has made a series of acquisitions since 2020, including influencer marketing agency Fanbytes.

Business Insider reported in June of this year that Brainlabs had hired investment bank Canaccord Genuity to find a new private-equity investor to replace Livingbridge.

Brainlabs confirmed that Canaccord had been appointed but said there were currently no further developments.