VML Promotes Debbi Vandeven to Global President, Keeps Creative Role

VML has promoted global chief creative officer Debbi Vandeven to global president, a role that puts one executive over creative and operations across more than 55 markets.

She keeps the chief creative officer title. According to a press release, Vandeven will hold both positions simultaneously and continue to be based in Kansas City, rather than relocating to one of the agency's larger hub offices.

What does the appointment change?

The move formally bridges organizational gaps between creative, technology and business at VML, the WPP-owned agency said. Vandeven has argued for breaking down those silos, and the new title gives her the structural authority to do it.

Her creative remit already spans some of the agency's highest-profile accounts. Vandeven leads the creative vision for work serving Colgate-Palmolive, Wendy's and The Coca-Cola Company.

Who is Debbi Vandeven?

Vandeven has spent 27 years at VML, a tenure that stretches across multiple acquisitions and WPP's recent Elevate28 turnaround strategy. She joined long before the agency became the largest creative network in WPP's portfolio and stayed through each restructuring wave.

That continuity matters now. The agency is in the middle of a leadership handover, and Vandeven is the connective tissue between the outgoing and incoming regimes.

How does the move fit the CEO transition?

Vandeven is the first major executive appointment under incoming global CEO Eric Campbell. Campbell officially succeeds Jon Cook in the new year, after Cook's departure was announced last month.

The sequencing is deliberate. Before starting in the new role in January 2027, Vandeven will work closely with Cook to ensure a smooth transition, serving as Campbell's "right hand" in the words of the announcement.

That gives VML two alignment tracks running at once: Vandeven learning the operational side from Cook, while Campbell builds out his own leadership team with Vandeven as its first visible member.

Why does the dual role matter?

Agencies often talk about integrating creative with technology and commercial strategy. Here, VML has encoded that integration into a single job description, with one accountable executive across both creative output and market operations.

The test comes after January 2027, when Vandeven takes full ownership of the expanded remit and Campbell settles in as CEO.

The promotion signals that VML's next chapter will be shaped by creative leadership sitting at the top of the org chart, not below it.