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NEW YORK, USA // Mike Tunnicliffe, Executive Vice President of Business Development & Partnerships, oversees Universal Music Group’s new business activity related to brand partnerships, strategic marketing alliances and marketing programs for advertisers in the USA.

Tunnicliffe works with the strategic marketing groups at the company’s labels and UMG’s digital, commercial and marketing departments to create new revenue opportunities for artists, labels and artists’ brands. He joined UMG on Jan. 1, 2015.                                  

Before UMG, Tunnicliffe spent 4 years from October 2010 - December 2014 at GroupM, the world’s largest media investment management company (part of WPP).

He was latterly the global Chief Growth & Marketing Officer  of GroupM and had responsibility for leading major business development and revenue growth activities across the company’s agencies, including Mediacom, Mindshare, MEC and Maxus, along with U.S.-based specialist businesses in the digital, content, analytics and programmatic trading areas.

He was instrumental in winning clients including NBC Universal, NBCU Digital and Nestle USA and was responsible for leading client facing teams to generate three-fold growth in revenues from GroupM’s specialist businesses. 

Prior to GroupM, from 2006-2010, Tunnicliffe was a partner at Tuna Music, The Filament Entertainment Group and SAS Digital Inc., where he helped create new revenue in both the brands and entertainment worlds through partnerships, strategic alliances and the creation of intellectual property along with a variety of alternative marketing ideas. 

Previously, Tunnicliffe held positions including Global Chief Client Officer, Initiative Media Worldwide (2000-2007) for the Interpublic Group, overseeing clients in their UK and New York offices including the company’s relationship with Unilever across 48 countries and was Group Managing Director of the four main UK business units of CIA Group plc/TEMPUS Group Plc, now a part of WPP Plc.

He started his career at Saatchi & Saatchi in the early 1980’s

Mike has been a keynote speaker, panelist or moderator at many conferences ranging from MIDEM to the Advertising Clios and has been a prolific writer in the music and brands space.