New Leadership for Truth and Instinctif

EMEA communications firm Instinctif Partners Group has appointed Julian Walker as CEO; having recently added Jim Donaldson as Non-Executive Chair, and Dr Matilda Andersson as MD of its subsidiary, British-based insight firm Truth.

Walker (pictured above) joins from CWT where he was Chief Communications Officer, and previously founded boutique capital markets firm Gainsborough. He also held creative, development and management roles at consultancy and PR firms including Hogarth Partnership (now MHP), Citigate Dewe Rogerson, Brunswick and Burson-Marsteller; and worked client side in corporate affairs and IR roles at Amec Foster Wheeler plc, Travelport and Chase Manhattan Bank.

In his new role Walker will oversee the group's operations in London, Dubai, Riyadh, Berlin, Frankfurt, Brussels, Dublin and Johannesburg, with a team of around 300 consultants - and including research and insights business Truth Consulting. Donaldson comments: 'Julian has empowered successful in-house and agency teams to deliver outstanding results over many years. I'm excited to work alongside someone of his calibre, in spearheading our firm's evolution', while Walker himself says he is 'particularly drawn to the opportunity presented by the blend of Instinctif and Truth capabilities, as more businesses look to data and insight to unlock growth'.

Andersson (pictured below) was appointed a month ago, a move described by the parent firm as 'aimed at propelling Truth into a new phase of innovation and growth'. She joins from Crowd DNA where she spent eight years, most recently as Group Managing Director, and earlier spent more than four years at BBC Studios in planning, strategy and insight roles, as well as serving at other BBC divisions including the World Service.

Founded in 2007, Truth boasts a diverse team of strategists, qual and quant researchers, semioticians, behavioural experts, trendspotters and other analysts. Andersson says she aims to develop the firm's collaboration within the parent group and its other capabilities, fostering shared offerings with comms, reputation and risk management specialists.

Web sites: www.truth.ms and www.instinctif.com .