EP+Co Appoints Kat Shafer as President to Succeed Allen Bosworth

Being able to retire on your terms is a luxury in this business, but Allen Bosworth, co-founder and president of EP+Co, is managing to do so after over 40 years.

“It is an opportunity for me to go do some things that I love,” Bosworth told ADWEEK, adding that he will be retiring from the industry but will be teaching at his alma mater, the University of North Carolina.

The IPG agency has revealed its leadership succession plan following Bosworth’s departure, naming Kat Shafer the new president of the agency, a role she will assume on Sept. 1. Shafer will take over leadership from Bosworth, who has been with the agency since he helped found it 36 years ago.

After serving for the last eight years as EP+Co’s president, Bosworth is set to retire at the end of 2024. Following the transition, Shafer will report directly to Alex Leikikh, IPG executive vice president of Interpublic Group.

“It’s time for Kat and the rest of the leadership team. We have an incredibly experienced leadership team. Kat and this team have been with us anywhere from 10 to 20 years. It’s a true opportunity for them to continue the path that they’ve been on,” said Bosworth.

An easy transition due to long-term employees

Shafer has been with the agency for nearly 20 years, serving most recently as chief client officer and chief growth officer. During her time at EP+Co, she has with the acquisition, growth and retention of numerous clients, including the Verizon account, which she led for nine years. Over the past two years, Shafer has helped EP+Co achieve 100% client retention and solid organic growth with clients including John Deere, Michelin, General Mills brands, Planet Oat, The UPS Store and others. 

As Shafer transitions into her new role, she looks to bring a higher profile to the agency while keeping on the same successful trajectory Bosworth helped guide.

“We often hear from our clients what a hidden gem we are. Our ultimate goal is we don’t want to be a hidden gem anymore,” Shafer told ADWEEK.

Shafer stated that the long tenure of its executive leadership team—14-and-a-half years with Bosworth’s tenure excluded—provides consistency to its clients. She will work with CCO John Cornette, chief strategy officer Chris Plating and others to work towards the agency’s mission, which is “creativity that builds belief,” while elevating the creative product and “remaining obsessive about growth.”

Employee tenure comes down to the culture, which they describe as entrepreneurial and supportive.

“It is a very entrepreneurial place, and people feel that they can truly make an impact,” said Shafer, using herself as an example. She started as a junior account executive and now she’s nearly at her 20^th anniversary because she felt all along she could make an impact.

She praised Bosworth for setting up the culture as one that cares, for its employees, its clients, its way of conducting business and how it interacts with the communities it’s in—Greenville, S.C. and New York—with the southern culture leading the way.

“The big, hairy, audacious goal that we’ve set for ourselves…is to be a place people crave to work at and a place people crave to work with,” said Bosworth.

Advice to the next generation

Bosworth acknowledges that the industry is rapidly changing and that EP+Co has done its best to meet those changes head-on.

The agency has made big investments of money, belief and time in AI and other technologies. Two years ago, the agency wrote its code of ethics around AI to keep a human element to the technology.

“I think humanity is the key to this. Yes, we’re going to do things faster. Yes, we’re going to do things more efficiently. But while we’re doing that, I believe that the digital pendulum is going to continue to swing,” said Bosworth, adding that the human, analog element is going to swing the other way to balance things out.

His advice to Shafer and the industry is to bet on both because the integration of humanity with technology is what is going to drive this business.

After his four decades in the industry, Bosworth looks forward to his passion for teaching young people. He has served as the president of the board of advisers for the University of North Carolina’s Hussman School of Journalism and Media for the past several years and has enjoyed teaching many of the school’s advertising and marketing classes, which he will continue.

“One of the sayings we have at EP+Co is, “always be humble enough to be a student, and always be generous enough to be a teacher,” said Bosworth, who is looking forward to continuing to serve others.

At the agency, he would always ask people: Did you try your hardest? And did you do it in the best interest of others?

“If you can say that in your heart, then you are leading a worthy life. And what I hope to do is I hope to continue to lead a worthy life in the service of others,” concluded Bosworth.