Roger Parry, chairman and CEO of Media Square is set to become non-executive chairman next year, with Peter Reid being promoted to chief executive.

The marketing group which owns IAS, The Gate Worldwide and Smarts has promoted Reid from group development director to chief executive from January although he will take up a position on the board immediately.

In June of this year Parry came into conflict with the group’s largest shareholder Peter Lynch who wished a place on the board, something Parry disagreed with, claiming that he lacked the correct experience, although the issue has yet to be fully settled.

Parry explained: “The role of a combined executive chairman and chief executive is unsatisfactory from a corporate governance best practice but in 2007 Media Square was in such a deep crisis that the best way to manage a radical recovery plan was to create the role on a temporary basis. I am delighted that despite the ravages of the recession, the turnaround has gone well and it is now possible to move to the far more conventional situation of a separate non-executive chairman and a chief executive.”