Kaizen, the independent SEO, Digital PR and social media agency with offices in Manchester and London, has appointed Jeremy Mcdonald CEO and Kristi Hoyle COO.
The agency has 50 employees and its clients include adidas, Compare the Market, The AA, and Co-op Bank.
The change of leadership coincides with Kaizen’s 10th anniversary of launching and represents continued progression for the team who have been integral to Kaizen’s growth and direction in recent years. McDonald joined Kaizen in 2019 as strategic director, transitioning to managing director soon after, and has been key to expanding the business to where it is today.
Hoyle has been with the business since 2021 and is essential to its operational running. Together they will form the new leadership structure with Pete Reis-Campbell transitioning to chair and founder.
Reis-Campbell said: “After leading the company for 10 years, it is now time for the next chapter in Kaizen’s story. I met Jeremy and Kristi a decade ago when we were all young adults with huge ambitions. As a result of joining forces, Kaizen in the past few years has transformed into an innovative, fast-growth business thanks to their incredible leadership.
“Since creating Kaizen, it has continued to reach heights beyond my wildest dreams. I will continue to provide guidance and mentorship to the leadership team in my new role as chair and founder.
“I’m so excited to see where Kaizen goes as we enter our next phase of growth under Jeremy and Kristi’s leadership.”
As CEO, McDonald will be responsible for the continued vision and direction of the business, including all strategic and commercial elements. He’ll lead the roll out of the global expansion of Kaizen’s offering. McDonald will be supported by Hoyle as COO, who will continue her work leading the delivery and client teams as they build out the next generation of leadership within the business.
McDonald said: “It’s a pleasure to continue steering Kaizen’s journey delivering the best in class SEO, digital PR and social media services for our clients. We’re at an exciting moment in time where we are committing to the next phase of our journey as an innovative, independent agency.
“Over the last twelve months we’ve explored M&A options, but have decided to remain as an independent agency. This enables us to continue our focus on our core values: innovation in our industry, delivering value for our clients and creating a people-first agency.
“There is a huge opportunity for us in 2024 to expand our offering of digital PR with our already established international services. So it’s never been a better time for Kaizen and I’m thrilled to have the talented team around us to deliver this vision.”
