The Health Service Executive (HSE) plans to move its media buying and planning account to Core’s Spark Foundry, Marketing.ie has learned. The transfer follows the Office of Government Procurement (OGP) organising a tender where all five of Ireland’s largest media agencies were invited to pitch. The account was previously handled by Carat.
The five agency groups invited to pitch were Dentsu Aegis Network (Carat), Core (Spark Foundry), GroupM, Havas and Omnicom (PHD). When contacted, Claire Cluskey, director of Empirica, the pitch doctor hired by the OGP to handle the review process, said she was unable to confirm the media agencies that responded to the tender invitation.
Former MEC director Michael Quilty co-ordinated the process at Empirica.
The review is classified by the OGP as “a mini competition” from a framework. While the OGP contracts have not yet been formally concluded, Marketing.ie has learned from reliable sources that a decision has been taken to move the account. Spark Foundry handles the Road Safety Authority (RSA), which also operates under OGP tendering procedures.
Pictured are scenes from the HSE dementia TV campaign created by Kick
