Group chief executive officer and co-founder of The Monkeys, Mark Green, has been appointed chair of The Communications Council, following the AGM held last week in Melbourne.

Green will oversee a number of initiatives during the coming months. His focus will be on showcasing the value of commercial creativity, building the talent within the industry through training and celebrating how creativity can drive commercial outcomes that fuel the long-term prosperity of the industry.

Commenting on his appointment, Green said: “I’m looking forward to taking on the role of chair of The Communications Council. The opportunity is to really help drive the value of commercial creativity on behalf of our members. Never has commercial creativity been more important to business. Tony and I will be working harder than ever to make this understood and celebrated.”

Welcoming Green to the role, Tony Hale, CEO of the Communications Council, said: “Since joining the board in August 2015, Mark has played a key role in setting our strategic direction and driving TCC initiatives. We now have an opportunity to build on all the good work that has been done. Mark will bring a great deal of energy to the role and unique insights given he is a founding partner of a great Australian independent agency, now owned by one of the large global consultancies.”

Green takes over the role from group chief executive officer of M&C Saatchi, Jaimes Leggett, who held the position since October 2015. Key achievements under Leggett’s leadership include the launch of the landmark Advertising Pays study, reinvigorating the Effie Awards and database including bringing Peter Field to Australia on several occasions. Plus the launch of many educational initiatives including the IPA courses and the highly regarded AWARD Creative Leadership course.

Hale said: “I would like to extend a huge thank you to Jaimes. He has led with a very steady hand, has provided valuable guidance at both an industry and personal level and has been responsible for many progressive initiatives for the industry in Australia. We are extremely grateful for his achievements and commitment.”

At the AGM, the incoming CEO of McCann Worldwide, Nicole Taylor was elected as deputy chair.

Laura Aldington, CEO of Host/Havas, Nick Garrett, CEO of Clemenger BBDO and Tara Ford, executive creative director of DDB Sydney were also elected to the board.

The full board of The Communications Council is now:

• Mark Green (chair) – group CEO, The Monkeys
• Nicole Taylor (deputy chair) – CEO, McCann Australia
• Laura Aldington – CEO, Host/Havas
• Paul Bradbury – CEO, TBWA Group
• Tara Ford – ECD, DDB Sydney
• Nick Garrett – CEO, Clemenger BBDO
• Jonathan Isaacs – CFO, Clemenger Group
• Lorraine Jokovic – CEO, LOUD
• Jaimes Leggett – group CEO, M&C Saatchi
• Michael Rebelo – CEO (Australian and NZ), Publicis Communications