Sainsbury’s has continued to restructure its marketing team after replacing the head of brand communications role with a new position.

Sainsbury's

Former head of brand communications Mark Given, who played a key role in the creation of the grocer’s controversial World War One Christmas advert, has taken on the newly created role of director for planning propositions on an interim basis.

Given will be responsible for the developing “powerful and distinctive propositions” behind brand campaigns and will also take on responsibility for the grocer’s Nectar loyalty scheme, according to Marketing.    

The head of brand communications position will be replaced with the new head of campaigns role, which will be filled by former head of price, promotions and marketing finance, Sarah Kilmartin.

The changes come after Sainsbury’s head of own-brand marketing Kirstin Knight parted ways with the supermarket giant earlier in the year, before head of customer experience Anna Shirley departed to become marketing director at Mecca Bingo.

A spokeswoman for the grocer said the ongoing changes were part of the marketing division’s move to “a linear, marketing process focused structure.”

Sainsbury’s is cutting hundreds of jobs in an attempt to save £500m in operating costs over the next three years. On Friday it revealed it would be ending its sponsorship deal with British Athletics two years early as part of its bid to save cash.

It has also issued £250m of convertible bonds to help plug a hole in its pension fund and sold off its pharmacy business to Celesio’s LloydsPharmacy in a £125m deal.