Byrne to lead Merkle’s EMEA agency ops

Byrne (pictured) will be responsible for leading Merkle’s growth plans for its agency offering which includes developing its strategic direction, market proposition, and key partnerships such as Google.

He will expand its agency business across Spain, the Netherlands, Dubai, Germany and the UK, covering paid search, programmatic display, social media, customer experience, advanced analytics and SEO.

Byrne was previously vice-president growth and partnerships at Merkle. He joined Merkle via Periscopix, which he had joined in 2009 and which was acquired by Merkle in 2015. He helped grow the agency from 20 to more than 280 people.

Byrne will also sit in the Merkle EMEA executive leadership team, representing  the agency services division.

Merkle EMEA’s recent acquisitions have included Divisadero in Spain, Oogst in the Netherlands and DWA, with offices in Munich and London.

Merkle was bought by Dentsu Aegis Network in 2016.