Criteo Names Michael Komasinski As CEO

Criteo appointed Michael Komasinski as its new Chief Executive Officer, effective 15 February 2025. He will also join the Board of Directors.

Komasinski will succeed Megan Clarken, who is retiring and stepping down from her role as CEO and from the Board. Clarken will continue to support the company in a senior advisory capacity to facilitate a seamless transition.

"We ran a comprehensive search process to identify the next CEO of Criteo to ensure we have the right leader to spearhead the next phase of the Company’s AI-fueled transformation and vision as the world's leading Commerce Media Platform," said Rachel Picard, Chair of Criteo's Board of Directors. “We are thrilled that Michael is joining us to lead Criteo at this exciting time in our journey. Michael is a high-calibre executive with the ideal mix of skills, including tech-enabled product development expertise, hands-on experience managing brand and retailer relationships, and a proven ability to drive accelerated growth and scale globally. Over the course of his career, Michael has also demonstrated a collaborative approach to management that has galvanized global organizations to lead in digital marketing and technology. We are confident that Michael will bring a valuable perspective to drive Criteo's strategy forward, further enhancing our commerce and retail media leadership, and building on our strong momentum thanks to Megan's critical contributions and the dedication of the entire team.”

Komasinski brings over 20 years of experience in AdTech, with a proven track record of building a global brand and retail relationships. Throughout his career, he has consistently delivered exceptional results for organisations, using technology-driven strategies to foster profitable growth while promoting an inclusive work environment.

Currently, Komasinski serves as CEO of the Americas, President of Global Data & Technology and is part of the Group Executive Management team at dentsu. He joined dentsu following its acquisition of Merkle in 2016, where he initially led both the EMEA and Americas regions before becoming the Global CEO of Merkle in 2021. At dentsu, he played a key role in the technological transformation of its product offerings during a period of rapid innovation. His efforts included integrating AI into dentsu’s products and platforms to create greater value for clients and shaping the company’s client-facing, data-driven technology strategy, which led to significant enterprise client acquisitions. Additionally, Komasinski has extensive experience in retail media, having expanded Merkle's retail media consulting practice and merged it with dentsu's top-tier media buy-side capabilities.

"Criteo’s transformation into a global commerce media powerhouse and AdTech leader has been inspiring, and I am excited and energized to serve as the company’s next CEO and build on this momentum,” said Komasinski. “There are massive growth opportunities in media today with new advancements in AI and a global rise in ecommerce, which are driving hyper-personalized consumer touchpoints across more content and devices than ever before. I'm thrilled to be partnering with Criteo’s talented team, who has built incredible assets in AI over the years, to deliver compelling commerce solutions for our clients and drive shareholder value.”

Before joining dentsu, Komasinski led a team of over 14,000 employees across more than 50 locations in the Americas, EMEA and APAC at Merkle. His leadership experience also includes roles at Razorfish, Schawk Retail Marketing, The Nielsen Company and A T Kearney. Komasinski serves as a board member for the Ad Council and is also a member of the client advisory boards of Meta and Microsoft. He holds a Bachelor of Science in Engineering and Philosophy from Vanderbilt University as well as an MBA from Indiana University's Kelley School of Business.