World: Analysis - Gatfield gets to grips with IPG's architecture and future plans.(Interpublic Group of Companies)(hiring of Leo Burnett Stalwart and Stephen Gatfield)

The Burnett stalwart thinks partnering shops is best for growth, Claire Billings writes.

After a turbulent year of accountancy discrepancies and a management shake-up, the Interpublic Group of Companies' chairman and chief executive, David Bell, has made his first indication of where he wants to position IPG on the world stage by hiring the Leo Burnett stalwart and international guru Stephen Gatfield.

Gatfield, who spent 18 years at the Publicis-owned network, has been credited with many initiatives on local and global scales, which have made the network famous.

At Leo Burnett, Gatfield raised standards to the point that the London office became the network's creative agency of the year.

Once his work there was done, he took his first step on to his international career path and became the regional managing director for Asia-Pacific. In 2001, he took on his latest role as the chief operating officer of Leo Burnett Worldwide.

However, in September last year the announcement came that he was leaving Publicis by mutual consent. There was speculation that his path to the top had been blocked.

His experience, combined with his intellect (he was a planning director at Saatchi & Saatchi before he joined Leo Burnett), gives him the ability to look at a network's global footprint and see where its strengths and weaknesses are.