We Are Social appoints Toby Southgate as Global Group CEO

Global socially-led creative agency We Are Social has appointed Toby Southgate as its new global group chief executive officer (CEO). Southgate, who succeeds the agency’s co-founder Nathan McDonald, will lead a team of 1,200 people across Europe, North America, Asia, and Australia. McDonald left the firm in October 2024, with Brett Marchand, CEO of We Are Social’s parent company Plus Company, stepping in as interim CEO.

Southgate’s new role will see him focus on evolving the agency’s ways of working, strengthening its global reach, and innovating its offerings in partnership with a prestigious roster of clients, including Samsung, Amazon Music, Starbucks, adidas, Activision, Netflix and Booking.com.

Commenting on his appointment, Toby told Campaign: “I’ve long admired We Are Social. It led the way by recognising the power of social and digital platforms for brands at scale and, as a result, it’s the only truly global agency in its space. Today, We Are Social has an incredibly bright future. We’ll be expanding our offering as the world’s most creative social agency, in partnership with what is undeniably a stellar roster of clients. The energy and appetite for growth and evolution with the network is really compelling. The role was very easy to accept.”

Southgate brings extensive global experience to the role, having previously served as the global CEO of Forsman & Bodenfors, where he unified the agency’s offices post-merger and achieved gender pay equity. Prior to that, he was the global chief growth officer at McCann WorldGroup and has worked across North America, Europe, the Middle East, and Asia. His earlier career included a decade at WPP's brand consulting unit Brand Union, where he led the company to numerous successes at Cannes and the Effies.

“We Are Social has had an extraordinary journey to become the world’s foremost social agency, with a significant global footprint, talented team, amazing work and spectacular clients. I believe that Toby’s experience in leading multi-national agencies to growth, combined with an exceptional leadership team at We Are Social, will be the winning combination to unlock the agency’s full potential. Toby’s passion for creating a culture where people are a priority so they can thrive and do their best work, was clear from the outset. He’s a first-class leader who will help steer We Are Social steadfastly into the next stage in its evolution,” Brett Marchand, CEO of our parent company, Plus Company, added.

Alongside Southgate’s appointment, We Are Social has bolstered its leadership team with recent hires. In October 2024, Rodrigo Mitma was named creative director to lead the creative team alongside Daniel Foo. Together, they will drive social-first, innovative, and effective work for clients. The agency also appointed Anton Reyniers as head of strategy for Singapore, who succeeded James Honda-Pinder, now head of growth for APAC in Tokyo.