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Barclays is to bring brands such as Woolwich and Barclaycard under

tighter control of marketing director Simon Gulliford and is creating a

marketing 'centre of excellence' in a radical group-wide

restructure.

Marketing directors for the retail bank, business banking, Barclays

private clients, Barclaycard, Woolwich and Barclaycard Capital will now

report directly to Gulliford, rather than a divisional director.

They will also have to consult the new 'centre of excellence' on issues

of brand identity, customer insight and marketing operations. The

creation of this centre marks the end of retail marketing group The

Circle.

The centre of excellence will consist of three senior marketers

reporting to Gulliford. Caitlin Thomas is promoted to director of group

brand strategy from her role of head of brand for the Barclays Group;

Oliver White is appointed director of customer insight from director,

customers, in the retail banking division; and Andrew Gillespie,

director of marketing operations, will head marketing processes and

agency relationships.

The move has prompted speculation that Barclays may reduce the number of

agencies on its advertising roster. Bartle Bogle Hegarty handles the

main Barclays brand, Publicis holds the Woolwich account and BMP DDB

handles Barclaycard.

The restructure is also likely to lead to job losses. According to a

spokesman for Barclays: "No jobs have been lost as a result of this

restructure. But it is inevitable that there will be fewer jobs in

marketing as the business goes forward."

COMMENT

Barclays' marketing rejig is part of a group-wide culture change

spearheaded by chief executive Matt Barrett, who wants to see marketing

take a more prominent role in driving the business forward.

In the past, the bank has been criticised for being too product focused

and for its lack of communication between different divisions. This has

led to brand disasters such as the unveiling of a £7m ad campaign

about the importance of being 'big' at the same time the bank announced

a massive branch closure programme.

The new structure, with its group-wide 'centre of excellence' should

allow for greater cohesion between the different parts of its business.