Publicis Groupe hires Matt Simpson for Epsilon’s global expansion

By Nathan Brooks

Publicis Groupe has appointed Matt Simpson as Chief International Officer of Epsilon, its connected identity data business, after he spent 18 years at Omnicom Media.

The newly created post gives Simpson the remit of growing Epsilon’s data, identity, media and technology solutions globally. He will be based in London and report to Epsilon Chief Executive Sean Reardon. The move takes him from Omnicom Media to the French-owned holding company.

His first task is to create an international roadmap for the business. The role also covers the commercial and operational integration of Epsilon with Publicis Groupe’s entities, including the Marcel artificial intelligence platform, Connected Media and local market agency teams.

Publicis Groupe said Simpson would work closely with Epsilon and the holding company’s market and regional leaders to deliver what it calls “marketing effectiveness for clients.” That wording frames the role as a client-growth mandate, although the announcement sets out no commercial targets.

Epsilon Chief Executive Sean Reardon said:

“Epsilon has an extraordinary opportunity to become the essential growth partner for marketers in every major market. Matt brings the transformation expertise and operational discipline to translate our global capabilities into meaningful local solutions that drive marketing impact.

His leadership will help us move faster, scale with greater consistency and unlock the full power of data and identity across our international business.”

What changes for Epsilon’s international business?

For practitioners, the immediate change is a named executive with a defined remit across markets. Simpson will own an international roadmap, coordinate commercial and operational integration, and connect central Epsilon with local agency teams.

The announcement sets no revenue, client, hiring or deployment targets, so Reardon’s claims about scale and local solutions remain corporate assertions rather than measurable performance.

A long digital operating record

Simpson’s route to the role has been rooted in digital media operations. He joined Omnicom in 2008 as head of digital at the then-OMD Group. He later became head of digital media across EMEA for Omnicom Media, then served as executive vice-president and chief digital operations officer.

In 2016, he became joint chief executive of investment. He moved into his most recent role in 2020. Outside Omnicom, Simpson has served as chairman of the digital media group at the IPA.

Simpson’s stated plan

Simpson described the role as an extension of Epsilon’s existing capabilities:

“Epsilon has tremendous strengths in data, identity and technology, and there is a significant opportunity to bring more of those capabilities to clients internationally.”

He said his focus would be working with colleagues across Publicis Groupe to identify where Epsilon could make the biggest difference for clients and turn that understanding into practical action. He also said he intended to build on what already worked and scale that success across markets.

The wider leadership slate

The international appointment follows other senior appointments in the United States. Michael Chock became chief growth officer, Ant McDonagh became general manager of Epsilon Digital, and Kathleen Dundas became chief solutions officer.

The announcement positions Simpson’s international mandate as an extension of those moves, rather than an isolated senior hire.

Simpson’s task is to turn Epsilon’s existing data, identity, media and technology assets into internationally usable client offerings, while fitting those offerings into the holding company’s operating structure. For agency and data practitioners, the practical measure will be whether the roadmap becomes consistent local execution, not whether the title alone delivers global growth.