Tag: Leadership

India – Dentsu Creative India has announced the appointment of Dalip Daniel, as the new group executive creative, and Tulika Seth, as the new group creative director, to bolster its creative team. Both will be reporting to Joy Mohanty, chief creative Officer of Dentsu Creative India.

In their new roles, Daniel and Seth will be focusing on boosting the agency’s creative competence for its existing and prospective clientele. They will design ideas that ‘Create Culture, Change Society, and Invent The Future’ by keeping modern creativity at the heart of the business.

Daniel is a seasoned creative leader and has held leadership roles across agencies and radio stations like Ogilvy & Mather, GroupM ESP, and BIG 92.7 FM. He has worked for brands like Airtel, Nokia, Limca, Dabur, and Pepsi, as well as SONY, and Honda, amongst many others. In addition to this, he has also created branded content for TV shows and launched BIG 92.7 FM in North India.

Meanwhile, armed with over 16 years of experience, Seth has led creative teams at agencies like Lowe, TBWA, Grey, Innocean, and Humour Me in Delhi and Mumbai. Some of the brands she has worked with include Hyundai, Dunzo, LG, and National Geographic, as well as Henkel, and Anne French, amongst others.

Commenting on his appointment, Daniel said, “This is an exciting opportunity, and I am thrilled to be joining dentsu at such a pivotal time.”

Meanwhile, Seth also commented, “‘Wholly integrated’ is the key descriptor that has really got me excited. The work that has been coming out of the agency is truly inspiring, and I can’t wait to dive right in.”

Mohanty said, “Together with a superb body of work, Tulika & Danny bring with them a wealth of experience across formats. They will both play a key role in driving our agenda of creativity beyond silos. It is great to have them on board.”

Just recently, Dentsu Creative India announced the appointment of Benny Augustine as its new chief operating officer, where he will oversee the agency’s operations in India. His objective will be to build various frameworks, platforms, and business processes that promote efficiency and effectiveness for clients using modern creativity.

Sydney, Australia – Advertising agency Howatson+Company has appointed Doug Hamilton and Michael Kleinman as its new creative directors.

Prior to joining Howatson+Company, Hamilton was a creative director at BMF and TBWA. Moreover, he also spent five years in New York at Droga5, and Anomaly. While Kleinman joins Howatson+Company from 72andSunny, where he was head of design. Prior to that, he also spent five years in New York at Droga5.

Commenting on their appointment, Hamilton said, “We’re delighted to be let inside the doors of Howatson+Company. One day in and we can tell it’s stuffed to the gills with lovely, clever humans. Michael and I never got to work together at Droga5, so we’re excited to have the chance now. We’re looking forward to rolling up the sleeves of our matching outfits and getting stuck in.”

Meanwhile, Levi Slavin, CCO at Howatson+Company, said, “I had the good fortune of working with Doug at Anomaly and have been a fan of Michael’s for ages. Both are splendid humans and extraordinarily talented. I’m absolutely thrilled they joined us in Sydney.”

In April 2022, Howatson+Company also added a duo to their creative team; Sophie Beard and Joash Tham are appointed as new creative directors.

Singapore – Global design consultancy Elmwood has made a number of major hires as it establishes its Singapore offer as one of the region’s leading design shops. They include Lisa Balm as creative director, Rachel Goh as head of insights, Kedar Karippail as client services director.

The new appointments mark a major refresh of the agency following Elmwood’s merger with Holmes & Marchant in the region in November 2021.

Goh will be responsible for using data and strategic thinking to help brands craft compelling stories and produce more culturally relevant work. She was previously a partner at Innate Motion, where she delivered insights and empathy-powered strategies for global and local brands across FMCG, beauty, fashion, technology and e-commerce brands. 

Meanwhile, Balm has worked on brands including Citibank, Singtel, Diageo, LVMH and PepsiCo. In her role at Elmwood, she will work alongside fellow creative director Jason Braddy to lead a creative team of more than 25 designers, visualisers and production specialists. 

Lastly, Karippail has over 20 years international brand and advertising experience working across India, New Zealand, Malaysia, Netherlands and the UK, for DDB, Geometry Global, Ogilvy & Mather and Y&R amongst others. She will work closely with Elmwood Singapore’s managing director Celeste Cheong on developing the agency’s overall growth and client strategy, building and maintaining relationships.

Cheong said, “It’s a hugely pivotal time for Elmwood Singapore and design consultancies in general. So I’m delighted that we’ve found the very best talent to help take Elmwood Singapore to the next stage in our journey. I’m really excited to work alongside Rachel, Lisa, Kedar and the existing leadership team to be an invaluable partner to all our clients.”

Meanwhile, Paul Galesloot, global CEO at Elmwood, commented, “Elmwood was created to design meaningful & memorable brands in the multi-platform age. And to do that, you need a team of experienced, truly global, diverse thinkers with an in-depth understanding of insight, idea and iconicity, as well as a broad business and industry acumen.” 

He added, “I’m delighted we’ve put together such a strong, new-look team for Elmwood Singapore, who collectively offer all the expertise required to produce distinctive, dynamic brand experiences that can succeed now and in the future.”

Singapore – Initiative, the media agency under IPG Mediabrands, has appointed Niranjan Singh as its new head of communications in Asia-Pacific. In his new role, he will champion the application of best-practice approaches, techniques and solutions for modern experience design.

In addition, he will drive the connected communications design practice across key clients and sectors for Initiative APAC.

Singh will report to James Smyllie, president of Initiative APAC and is currently based in Mumbai, India prior to transitioning to the Initiative APAC regional headquarters in Singapore. His appointment is effective immediately. 

He has more than 16 years industry experience in strategic media planning and buying, and was previously the head of AOR at Mediacom Indonesia, leading the P&G business for three years.

Prior to that, he spent six years at GroupM, working across leading brands such as Colgate Palmolive, GSK and FrieslandCampina in India and Vietnam.

Speaking on his appointment, Singh said, “I’m thrilled to join Initiative APAC. Initiative’s unique proposition of achieving Cultural Velocity™ in the media-fragmented world to deliver real business growth and success for brands, was the big pull factor for me. I’m super excited to become a part of the team that has been winning Global businesses back-to-back.”

Meanwhile, Smyllie commented, “We are delighted to be attracting talent like Niran to Initiative. This hire reinforces our key focus on enhancing our Craft capabilities across APAC, and driving a consistently world class product throughout the region.”

The new Initiative appointment follows a slew of appointments made by agencies under the IPG Mediabrands company in APAC, namely the appointment of MBCS’ Olivia Warren to its Australia executive team, as well as of Sarah O’Leary and Tom Cumberworth for Initiative’s Rufus, the dedicated media and communications for Amazon.

Australia – Creative agency BMF has announced four new appointments, in an aim to double down on the agency’s creativity, effectiveness, content, and social capabilities. These include Hannah McHard, the new head of effectiveness, Phoebe Carden, the new content and social strategist, and Alister McCann and Joe Mallett, the new senior creatives. 

Before joining BMF, McHard has a four-year stint as insights and strategy manager at supermarket ALDI Australia. In addition, McHard also has held a 14-year position at Kantar. As new head of effectiveness, McHard will be harnessing data, analytics, and insights, to further BMF’s culture of effectiveness. 

Meanwhile, Carden has been appointed after working as a content social strategist and writer for recognised brandings including Disney, the ABC, Optus, Universal Sony, and NSW Health. In her new position, Carden will be working in a hybrid role with both BMF and its content production arm Bantam, which has worked with clients including ALDI Australia, MONA, TAL, Gumtree, RMIT University, and UN Women. With the recent wins of Lounge Lovers and George Weston Foods’ social account, Carden will be driving both Bantam’s and BMF’s social capabilities and identifying new opportunities to inform brand and content strategy, working across key clients.

Adding to its creative team is Mallet, who has spent six years at Lucky Generals London and has worked on world-class clients including, PlayStation, Hostelworld, the co-op supermarket, and most recently Amazon’s Super Bowl commercial, featuring Scarlett Johansson.

In addition, McCann, who also joins as a senior creative, has worked at agencies including AnalogFolk, CX Lavender, The Works, M&C Saatchi, and The Green House on brands including Westfield Australia, Westpac, CommBank, McDonald’s, Optus, Woolworths, and Curtin University, as well as Coke Zero and Coors Beer.

“Alister and Joe have only just got through the door and they’re already making a big impact, not only on our client’s business but on the culture of collaboration and kindness that BMF is so proud of. With their talent and experience in non-traditional thinking, both here and overseas, they’re going to do great things and we’re all very happy they’ve decided to call BMF home,” said Alex Derwin, chief creative officer at BMF Australia.

Meanwhile, Christina Aventi, chief strategy officer at BMF, commented that they’re thrilled to have Carden and McHard join their motley crew of planners, as both are believers in creativity and effectiveness that will help them navigate the metrics that matter in a world of data overload. 

“Phoebe will be working closely with Irina, Executive Director, Digital and Direct Strategy across our clients and our content unit Bantam. Hannah will be working across ALDI and government and any client that expresses an interest in unlocking even greater effectiveness in their communications (like everyone?). In a tight talent market, we feel really lucky to have these two dynamos join us,” said Aventi.

Singapore – Global food company Mondelez International has announced the appointment of Hemant Rupani as its new president of its Southeast Asia business unit. He was previously the managing director of Mondelez Kinh Do Vietnam, and replaces Glenn Caton who has moved to a global role.

In his new role, Rupani will be responsible for the SEA cluster of markets including the exports business in the broader Asia-Pacific, Middle East and Africa (AMEA) region, leading growth and end-to-end business.

Rupani is an accomplished leader with over 20 years of experience working in India, US and Vietnam covering various industries including food and beverage (F&B), telecommunications, and consulting. Prior to joining Mondelez International in 2016, he worked with several leading organisations including PepsiCo, Vodafone, Britannia, and Infosys Technologies.

Speaking about his appointment, Hemant said, “The SEA business has been on an accelerated growth path driven by increasing consumption, digital penetration, talented population, and cultural diversity in the region.”

He added, “We have built a reign as category leaders across segments with our portfolio of iconic global brands and local jewels. Combining our solid team, local-first strategy, and robust investments, we are in a strong position to lead the future of snacking and drive sustainable growth forward.”

Manila, Philippines – Global advertising network Dentsu has announced the new wave of leaders in the Philippines, namely Jerry Hizon as chief creative officer for Dentsu Jayme Syfu and Dentsu One Manila, Elyse Bella as managing director of Dentsu Jayme Syfu, and Edg Samson as managing director of Dentsu One Manila.

Prior to his role expansion, Hizon previously led the transformation of the Dentsu One Manila creative team as its chief creative officer. He has also worked on Nissin Ramen, Dole Philippines and Seaoil and went on to win various awards and citations for their brands.

Ronald Barreiro, CEO of creative service at dentsu Philippines, said, “Jerry’s passion for excellence makes him the perfect choice for this leadership position. I’ve worked with him for 13 years and have seen how he has continued to elevate and evolve the creativity we do on behalf of our clients. Jerry has been heavily involved in the development of our next-gen creative leaders and the culture of excellence that we have imbibed in our leaders at dentsu has aptly prepared him for this career milestone.”

Meanwhile, Bella will oversee business transformation at dentsu. She has been a long-time dentsu account lead, directly overseeing its major Japanese accounts including Ajinomoto, Yamaha, and Glico. She was instrumental in leading the agency’s new business wins for Shell and Mang Inasal.

“Known as the agency’s resident “Tiger Mom”, Elyse is a tenacious and dedicated business leader who continuously provides comprehensive solutions for our clients. Having run the most profitable business unit in Dentsu Jayme Syfu for six consecutive years, Elyse will partner with brands to achieve meaningful progress for growth with innovative ideas and solutions and help businesses move forward,” Barreiro stated.

Lastly, Samsom has played a critical role in a number of dentsu Philippines’ most notable business wins, including a part of the team that won the Coca-Cola account. He has overseen top accounts including Jollibee, Unilever, and Wyeth.

Alex Syfu, chief advisor at dentsu Philippines, commented, “Edg is a true business leader who thrives in challenging work situations because of his calm and collected demeanour. With a solid track record and his strong affinity with our people, Edg is the perfect person to lead Dentsu One Manila to its next phase of growth.”

Barreiro was appointed as the new CEO of dentsu Philippines’ creative service line in October 2021, following the promotion back then of Merlee Jayme to the role of chief creative officer for Asia-Pacific at dentsu. Jayme has since stepped down from dentsu after serving with the company for six years.

Singapore – Advertising company GREY has announced that Irene Wong, current CEO of GREY Malaysia, and Graham Drew, current chief creative officer at GREY Malaysia, will be taking on full commercial and creative responsibility across the Malaysia and Singapore studios.

GREY Singapore will join GREY Malaysia to become one unit under the new joint leadership structure. After eight years at GREY Singapore and thirty years in the industry, Konstantin Popovic, CEO at GREY Singapore will leave the agency at the end of the year to refocus his career on his deep passion for sustainability.

Wong and Popovic and their respective leadership teams will work closely over the next three months to ensure a seamless transition

As CEO of GREY Malaysia & Singapore and CCO of GREY Malaysia & Singapore, Wong and Drew will have equal responsibility across the two offices, taking full advantage of the greater pool of resources and talent.

A high-profile member of the Malaysian ad scene, Wong previously held posts at Leo Burnett and Naga DDB before coming to Grey. Rising to CEO in 2015, she honed her craft by working on a balance of both local and multinational brands such as Telekom Malaysia, Ministry of Finance, The National COVID-19 Immunisation Programme, SEA Games 2017, P&G, Lenovo, Volvo, HSBC, Hong Leong Bank and Coway. Under her stewardship, the business has continued to grow year-on-year, with a healthy and stable mix of local and international clients.

Originally from the UK, Drew arrived at Grey in 2014 and is widely recognised for shaping the creative reputation of the Malaysia studio. As CCO, he has led the team to unparalleled creative success and noteworthy pitch wins, including Carlsberg, Tesco, Telekom Malaysia and WWF. Over the past four years, he has successfully led borderless work across the network for clients such as SK-II, Enfagrow, Hong Kong Tourism Board and multiple projects as global ECD for Carlsberg. Drew is also the chairman of the APAC Creative Council and a member of the Grey Global Creative Board.

Wong said, “This is such an exciting opportunity for us and the teams and a chance for synergy. The truth is every studio has things that they are great and not so great at, being able to fill each other’s gaps and becoming a stronger unit across the board is what this is all about.”

Meanwhile, Drew commented, “One of the better things we learnt over the past few years is that utilising talent shouldn’t be dependent on geography. Exposing the Singapore team to the creative talent of Malaysia and vice versa will be inspirational on all fronts and will be reflected in the work.”

Mumbai, India – The Advertising Standards Council of India (ASCI) has elected NS Rajan, director of August One Partners LLP, as its new chairman of the board of governors.

Rajan is a public relations veteran with a demonstrated history of setting up and managing firms in the PR industry. He was earlier the founder and managing director of Ketchum Sampark, an Omnicom Group Company.

In a statement, Rajan said that in his leadership at ASCI, he will focus on thought leadership initiatives, industry reports and its ASCI Academy to take ASCI ahead into the future.

He also looks forward to advancing the agenda of the Council to rapidly increase ASCI awareness among consumers so that they engage more readily and in greater numbers, voicing their concerns, anxieties, and questions about what they experience in the form of thousands of ads per day.

“I would also focus on ASCI’s efforts more towards prevention, in addition to the robust corrective mechanisms we have built over the decades. This we would do by using the several initiatives already in play – whether advice, guidance, training, or self-regulation,” Rajan said.

He added, “The third pillar would be to keep ahead of the fast-expanding and fractionalising digital domain to ensure that responsible advertising principles are followed equally across all media and consumer engagements by advertising in every form. A lot has been done by ASCI over the last several years, and I am committed to seeing that the momentum generated by all past efforts is kept alive or even pushed forward with greater speed.”

Meanwhile, outgoing chairman Subhash Kamath commented, “The past two years have been truly transformational for ASCI. Our vision of making ASCI more future-ready by taking on the challenges of a digital world and a fast-changing communication landscape, and by adding value to the industry through more agility, responsiveness, services, and thought leadership, has started showing results.” 

He added, “I’m sure ASCI will continue to grow from strength to strength in the coming years. It’s been a privilege to serve as its chairman and I thank the board, the CCC members and the wonderful secretariat team for making it possible.”

Hong Kong – To prepare for its APAC growth, independent communications agency Sinclair has announced new leadership appointments. These include Carbo Yu as the new regional executive director and Jessica Man as the new managing director for Hong Kong.

Yu, a seasoned industry professional in APAC, will now be furthering the agency’s integrated service offerings across SEO, content strategy, influencer marketing, research and insights, and creative services, as well as driving business development across the agency’s cross-industry B2B and B2C client base across the offices in Hong Kong, Shanghai, and Singapore.

Meanwhile, Man, a highly sought-after strategic advisor and expert communications consultant, will be leveraging her passion for protecting and growing brand reputation alongside her dedication to nurturing next-generation talent, and will be taking full responsibility for the Hong Kong business’ revenue growth and talent development.

The agency has also elevated Philippa Lui as the new chief financial officer. Lui, an 18-year finance and operations professional, will continue to ensure Sinclair meets the highest ethical standards in cross-border operations and compliance, as well as helping to steer agency growth.

Kiri Sinclair, founder and CEO at Sinclair, said, “Sinclair’s Team First philosophy focuses on growing the careers of our team, and we wish to attract and nurture instinctive leaders, bold thinkers and creative problem-solvers. These are exactly the attributes that Philippa, Carbo and Jessica live by and empower their colleagues to strive for.”

Meanwhile, Stephen Millikin, chief operating officer at Sinclair, noted, “At Sinclair, we champion agency and personal successes equally, and I wholeheartedly congratulate Philippa, Carbo and Jessica on their professional achievements. It means that we are doing something very right, and I look forward to seeing more individuals continue to grow their careers with Sinclair.”