Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia – Former CEO of advertising agency Publicis Groupe in Malaysia, Kien Eng Tan, has been appointed by the Malaysian arm of global communications network dentsu as its CEO, effective February 8 this year.
Through his new role, Tan will be responsible for continuing the business’ transformation journey, driving integration across media, creative, and CXM service lines, building a strong culture with its people, and growth for its clients’ business. He will report to Ashish Bhasin, CEO of dentsu Asia Pacific.
“I am excited to be joining dentsu, with its strong heritage of innovation at such a pivotal time. The market has never been more dynamic with COVID-19 rewriting consumer behavior and therefore, expectations of the brands they engage with. Dentsu is excellently placed to capitalize on this pivot for its clients, and I am looking forward to working with the teams to develop and grow these opportunities,” Tan commented.
Prior to joining dentsu, he also served as CEO to advertising agency Leo Burnett in Malaysia, accumulating more than 30 years experience in advertising and communications, and 15 years of senior leadership roles in the advertising industry.
“I am delighted to have Kien take over at such an important time. Over the years he has built a formidable reputation creating visionary work and growth for brands, as well as strong and united teams and I am looking forward to seeing him take Malaysia into its next era of growth. Nicky has been CEO at dentsu Malaysia for almost six years; I’d like to thank him for his leadership and wish him success with his future endeavors,” said Bhasin.
Tan’s predecessor Nicky Lim is said to move on from his role to pursue other interests.
