Tag: Leadership

Singapore – Edelman has announced key leadership changes in its Singapore team. It is led by the newly-appointed chief executive officer Julia Wei, followed by Yeelim Lee promoted as chief operating officer. Other leadership appointments include Nisha Sivanandan as head of strategy and integrated client leadership, Jonathan Ha as head of digital and integrated solutions, Amanda Lam as director of human resources, and Xi Ling Lee as finance director.

Wei will report to Adrian Warr, CEO for Southeast Asia at Edelman, and will build on the agency’s growth and innovation in earned-centric, integrated campaigns.

She leaves her role as managing partner at AKA Asia to return to Edelman where she previously spent a decade honing her capabilities. She now brings over 17 years of diverse expertise in integrated communications, both in-house and agency, to drive growth through modern communication approaches. 

Meanwhile, Lee has spent eight years with the firm, across Hong Kong and Singapore, and has held positions that built experience in regional client management, data and analytics, sector and practice leadership, and new business operations.

Speaking on her appointment, Wei said, “Edelman has always held a special place in my heart and the opportunity to return in a leadership role at a pivotal point of the agency was a no-brainer. I’m looking forward to working with my new, and former, colleagues and collectively elevating our work, our skills and of course continuing on our business success.”

Meanwhile, Warr commented, “I could not be more pleased to see Julia return to the fold. Having achieved several years of fast growth and bold innovation, in spite of significant market headwinds, we now have a unique window of opportunity to evolve our culture, capabilities, and our services to clients – there’s nobody better than Julia to lead that charge.” 

He added, “Julia’s going to have three clear priorities – firstly, maintaining the best agency culture in the market, secondly getting A-list fame for the amazing work we do with our client, and thirdly creating new ways of working in this fascinating hybrid world. Julia and Yeelim have very complimentary skillsets and experience –together, they will lead the team to new frontiers.”

Sydney, Australia – Rufus, the dedicated media and communications agency by Initiative for Amazon’s range of services, has announced new senior leadership appointments namely Sarah O’Leary as managing director and Tom Cumberworth as head of partnerships.

O’Leary has a strong media investment background garnered from 15-years in senior management and director roles both agency and marketing-side. 

Previously with Atomic 212 as Head of Client Service and Planning, O’Leary’s strengths lie in her leadership qualities and deep understanding of how media agencies operate within the ANZ landscape.

Meanwhile, with nearly 15-years of global and local experience, Cumberworth was previously group trading director at OMD Sydney where he led the Suncorp Group business, overseeing the investment strategy and decisioning for the entire portfolio across all media. 

Previously he was with Mindshare and MEC in the UK commencing in 2008 as a TV buyer and moving to an account director role working on clients such as Nike, News Corp, 3 Mobile and Kimberly Clark to name a few.

Melissa Fein, CEO at Initiative Australia said after a robust search and selection process she was delighted to welcome both Sarah and Tom to Rufus, who together bring specialist skills to the table and are charged with delivering high performance outcomes for Amazon.

“Sarah has a proven track record of leading senior stakeholder relationships and delivering business growth in today’s complex and fast-moving market. We’re delighted she has accepted the opportunity to lead Rufus at a pivotal time in the agency’s growth and momentum,” she said.

Fein added, “Tom is an outstanding team leader with a raft of global and local experience managing and leading specialist buying teams across all media platforms, inclusive of TV, VOD, OOH, Radio and more. He will play a leading role in Rufus, Amazon and our media partners’ future successes.”

Singapore – Creative agency Ogilvy Asia has announced a new slew of hires to bolster its creative team in Singapore and Hong Kong, namely Nikhil Panjwani as regional executive director; Dan Parmenter as creative director; Hugo Suíssas as senior art director; and Tiago Silva as senior copywriter.

The new recruits will primarily work within OpenX – WPP’s bespoke team dedicated to The Coca-Cola Company and its portfolio of brands across Asia Pacific – whilst also supporting Ogilvy’s growing client demand in Asia for cross-capability ideas that generate impact across geographies and cultures.

They join an existing team of other hires including Regional Executive Creative Director for Ogilvy Asia Sarah-Leith Izzard and Associate Creative Directors at Ogilvy Hong Kong Stratos Efstathiou and Soenar.

Panjwani joins Ogilvy Asia as regional executive director, based in Singapore. He brings close to 20 years of creative experience, the last seven as creative director for BBH Singapore. Born and bred in Bombay, Nikhil has led teams across India and Southeast Asia to produce award-winning work for leading global brands.

Meanwhile, Parmenter most recently served as creative director for M&C Saatchi Abel in South Africa, steering the creative output of key accounts including Nando’s, Standard Bank and Lexus. A copywriter by trade, he brings strong strategic expertise in ideating and bringing big creative ideas to life, having previously worked as copywriter and creative group head at Ogilvy Johannesburg between 2008 and 2015.

Based in Singapore, Suíssas and Silva have met at Lisbon-based agency Brandia Central in 2013, and have worked together at agencies across Portugal, including excentricGrey, Young & Rubicam Group and O Escritório, serving clients in the auto, retail and banking sectors.

Reed Collins, chief creative officer for Ogilvy in APAC, commented, “We are blessed with such extraordinary creative talent across the region, with this team being specifically built as a microcosm of that around being the best creative partner for our clients’ growth ambitions globally. Our creative bench has never been stronger and ambition greater.”

Sydney, Australia – IPG’s connected intelligence company, Kinesso, has elevated Clay Gill, the current CEO at Matterkind Australia, to be its new CEO for Australia. As part of his new remit, Gill will retain his Matterkind leadership role while adding responsibility for Kinesso Australia’s data and technology solutions.

Gill noted that marketers can engage IPG from start to finish knowing that the design of their digital marketing requirements from CDP to media activation is fully transparent and effective, and that the company’s supply path optimisation agenda is also unparalleled globally, as it’s fully auditable and accountable – ensuring every dollar spent in media is validated.

He further shared, “IPG offers its clients an end-to-end solution across Martech, Adtech and Media activation using First Party Data at a deterministic level. Where insight and scalability are a challenge for the industry, IPG’s full-stack offering provides clients [with] an unmatched ability to extend beyond their own eco-system and or access a quick-to-market data solution through Acxiom’s Infobase.”

“We are by far ahead of the cookie crumble and very much leading the way towards connecting consumers with their brands. I am excited about what the future holds and the expanded offering for our clients,” said Gill.

Meanwhile, Mark Coad, CEO at Mediabrands Australia, commented that Gill is an outstanding leader and the extension of his role is a testament to his leadership qualities and the great work Matterkind continually produces for its clients.

He added, “In his new role, Clay’s primary responsibility will be to ensure clients have a single, simplified engagement experience with Acxiom, Kinesso and Matterkind; companies that work closely together as part of the data, technology, and media activation backbone of IPG.”

Matt Ware, CEO at Kinesso APAC, said, “Clay and his team have established an industry reputation for craft, innovation, and client servicing and I’m confident with his industry knowledge and zeal for innovation and solving client problems, combined with the calibre of his team, that he will be well positioned to bring the full spectrum of Kinesso and Matterkind capabilities to life. I am delighted he has taken on the expanded leadership role”

As part of the new Matterkind/Kinesso leadership team, Michael Whiteside, former head of Melbourne/Perth, will be moving to the role of national managing director of Matterkind, while Kim Kho, previously UM’s director of Biddable Media, Australian Government, will be taking on the role of national head of trading at Matterkind. Additionally, Matterkind also welcomes Georgina Fox, former head of operations at GroupM’s Finecast, to be its new national head of strategic investment and partnerships. 

On the appointment of his new team, Gill said, “As a leader, nothing is more pleasing than recognising talent and promoting from within plus onboarding innovative leaders of the future. In Michael, Kim, and Georgina I am confident the business has the skills, knowledge and creativity to offer our clients truly world-class end-to-end business solutions.”

Jakarta, Indonesia – Ogilvy has announced the appointment of Sieg Penaverde as the new group chief executive officer for Indonesia, succeeding previous CEO B. Ramanathan who moves to a regional role.

In his new role, he leads an Ogilvy Group powered by close to 300 experts in brand communication and activation, digital experience, public relations, health and content studio who work fluidly together to unleash impactful creativity that grows its clients’ brands and businesses.

Having held leadership positions in the Philippines, Mexico, Japan and Indonesia, Penaverde brings invaluable global, regional and local insights and wealth of experience in unearthing creative solutions through data and technology fueled with powerful cultural truths. 

Speaking on his new role, he said, “Beyond the amazing talent and expertise across the Ogilvy family, it is the power of borderless creativity and the resilience of our people through the challenges of the pandemic that has inspired us all. We did not allow anything to get in the way of delivering impactful creative work. This strength in numbers gives us the confidence to deliver against the mandate of uncovering growth opportunities for our clients.”

He added, “We also embrace a shared goal doing our part to ensure that we come out of this pandemic with a better normal, not just a new one.”

Meanwhile, Kent Wertime, co-CEO of Ogilvy Asia, commented, “I couldn’t be happier that Sieg is taking on the leadership role in Indonesia. During his tenure with the Ogilvy Group in Indonesia – first as head of Bates and more recently with the additional responsibilities across the whole group as group COO – Sieg has proven to be a trusted and worthy leader, and a natural successor as head of the Group. Sieg is supported by a very capable executive leadership team, who are aligned to Ogilvy’s mission to help our clients in Indonesia.” 

Singapore – Ogilvy today announced new senior leadership appointments in Asia, including B. Ramanathan (Ram)’s nomination as chief marketing officer for and Janet Tsai’s promotion as chief communications officer. 

Through the appointments, both appointees will work hand in hand to strengthen Ogilvy’s position as a creative partner for growth, developing and promoting new modern offerings across Ogilvy’s five business units across content, data and technology.

In his new function, Ram will lead Ogilvy’s go-to-market approach in Asia, responsible for accelerating marketing and new business efforts. An agency veteran of 22 years, Ram most recently served in a dual position as chief executive officer for Ogilvy Indonesia and Bates CHI & Partners Indonesia.

Following Ram’s regional promotion, Ogilvy’s operations in Indonesia will now be led by Sieg Penaverde, who previously assumed the chief operating officer role in the country. 

Meanwhile, Tsai’s appointment is added to her existing role as VP for marketing and communications for Ogilvy China and global lead for Ogilvy’s Outbound Practice. In the added role, she will work closely with Ram to elevate Ogilvy’s reputation, promote new offering and services, and showcase the impact of borderless creativity to drive Ogilvy’s clients business growth. 

Tsai is a seasoned leader with PR, brand building, crisis management and integrated content planning experience across a number of industries including technology, finance, auto, entertainment, fashion and luxury.

Kent Wertime, chief executive officer for Ogilvy Asia, said, “Ram has been a terrific leader for our business in Indonesia. He has a huge heart for our clients, for our staff, and for the work we do to help grow our brands make an impact in the world. We are incredibly excited to have Ram at the helm of our marketing and growth function to help our clients push boundaries and make the most of the opportunities in this part of the world.”

Meanwhile, Chris Reitermann, chief executive for Ogilvy Asia and Greater China, commented, “Janet has played an instrumental role in leading corporate communications in China in addition to her client-facing duties for our China Outbound Practice. Her strong expertise and performance in China made her a natural candidate to take the reins of our regional communications as we enter a new exciting growth phase.” 

Singapore – Media and marketing communications agency PHD has appointed Imogen Bourke as its strategy director for Asia-Pacific, where she will be responsible for the continuous development and elevation of the agency’s strategic product and capability roadmap within the region.

Bourke brings with her a blend of skills honed from 16 years of diverse roles across media, technology, and production organisations and expansive international experience having worked in London, Melbourne, and Beijing.

She was previously the head of strategy for PHD Hong Kong, where she was instrumental in supporting the success and growth of the agency – in new business wins, major account retention, and media creativity.

Bourke will also be guiding teams across the region to produce effective brand experiences that deliver business outcomes and positively inspire people, communities, and culture. In addition, she will also be charged with developing industry-first strategies and challenger thinking propositions to future-proof clients’ businesses and drive sustainable growth.

She will be reporting to James Hawkins, CEO of PHD APAC.

Speaking on her appointment, Bourke said, “I could not be more excited by this opportunity to expand my experience and expertise across the APAC markets. It’s a wonderful gig to work closely with the region’s best strategists and planners to champion and grow PHD’s market-leading product, and continue to cultivate a culture of creativity, innovation and collaboration that delivers unparalleled strategic thinking and solutions for our clients.”

Meanwhile, Hawkins commented, “Imogen’s media and strategic expertise paired with her ability to build high-performing teams will help to elevate PHD’s product offerings and drive business results for clients. I am confident in Imogen’s ability to be the driving force in uncovering marketplace opportunities and lead the best strategic planning team in the region.”

Vietnam – Global communications company Havas Group has announced the reestablishment of its fully-owned village operations in Vietnam. It has also appointed Alexandre Sompheng as group CEO and Thanh Bui as managing director.

Earlier this year, Havas ended its partnership with its local affiliate and decided to re-establish its full-service Village offering, as Havas Group Vietnam. Havas Group Vietnam will therefore house the following businesses for the group, namely Havas Creative, Havas Media, Havas Health, RED Havas (PR) and Ekino.

Having been part of Havas for 10 years and previously overseeing the operations for Ekino in Vietnam, the Village’s digital arm, Sompheng’s extended remit as Group CEO will see him responsible for all aspects of the business operations and championing the group’s vision. 

“This is indeed an exciting opportunity to extend our future-forward vision. Our Havas Village model of collaboration and integration is exactly what clients are looking for. Our local and regional teams provide quality service at international standards for our clients, making Havas a force to reckon with in the Vietnamese market as well as in SEA,” Sompheng said.

Meanwhile, with over 15 years of experience working across large client portfolios, Bui will be responsible for leading integrated solutions, strategic client management and new business for the agency. 

“Havas’ Village offering is truly unique and allows us to be innovative, agile to adapting business challenges and create the most meaningful experiences as well as drive growth for our clients. I am extremely excited to be part of the team and looking forward to taking Havas Vietnam to its next phase of growth and expansion,” Bui said.

Meanwhile, Alberto Canteli, CEO and chairman at Havas Group, Nordics CEE & Middle East, SEA & NA, said, “Our success as a network is determined by the strength of our people and leadership. Vietnam is a significantly important and growing market. Alexandre and Thanh have the proven expertise coupled with extremely strong leadership skills to build on what we have within the network and will help to set us up for renewed success.”

Shanghai, China – Brand experience agency Uniplan in China has announced key leadership appointments, led by Sonny Shen, currently managing director of Uniplan Shanghai, adding responsibility as managing director of Uniplan China. In addition, Gordon Wang, currently managing director of Uniplan Beijing, has been appointed as chief growth officer of Uniplan China.

Shen will work with leaders across Beijing and Shanghai offices to lead the transformation and growth of the agency’s China business. Meanwhile, Wang will continue to manage the Beijing office’s client business and lead the agency’s new business development in China. 

Both will report to Christian Zimmermann, chairman and group CEO at Uniplan directly.

Wang said, “I am delighted to take on this new role in this phase of our China transformation. As the China market changes rapidly, the new team enables us to meet the changing requirements of our clients for cross-channel brand experiences along the entire customer journey. We’ll leverage the joint efforts from Beijing and Shanghai offices to achieve sustained growth.”

Meanwhile, Shen said, “We are a well-defined, unified creative network that brings together as many experts, capabilities, and ideas as possible in pursuit of creating exceptional brand experiences. Our clients are increasingly looking for the right strategic partners who can understand the needs of their business to help them deliver sustainable brand growth at scale. I look forward to the new challenge and working with Gordon and Robert to unlock new pathways for success.”

In addition, Robert Paschen has joined Uniplan as executive creative director of Uniplan China to reinforce the creative team and enhance creative effectiveness. He is based in Shanghai and reports to Sonny Shen.

“I’m excited to be joining Uniplan. The post-pandemic landscape in China presents greater opportunities for us to enhance our creative capabilities and create more integrated and inspiring brand experiences, delivered in the most engaging and impactful ways. I’m also looking forward to collaborating with this talented team and creating meaningful work that truly memorable moments for audiences across China,” Paschen said.

Speaking about the appointments, Zimmerman said, “I’m very grateful to have Sonny and Gordon stepping up and take on the new roles, and welcome Robert to join our family. The new structure will form a new One China Team with an even higher integrated service portfolio and a broader consulting offering to further drive innovation. We are confident that under the leadership with Sonny and Gordon, the new team will drive the next chapter of our growth and transformation journey and unlock the tremendous opportunities emerging in the fast-evolving Chinese market.”

Auckland, New Zealand – DDB Aotearoa has welcomed two new members to its strategy team, namely Charlotte Marks and Laura Davies as joint heads of planning. 

Both experienced strategists, Davies and Marks say they are excited to be working together to help take DDB’s planning team to new heights. 

Previously the strategy director at DDB Aotearoa, Marks joined the team two years ago and immediately made an impact, delivering strong results across a vast client portfolio.

Speaking on her appointment, she said, “DDB has a special knack for developing both longstanding, emotive brand campaigns and timely, innovative creative solutions. The planning team play an important role in the process, identifying powerful insights that go on to strike a chord with New Zealanders and produce a positive outcome for our clients. I feel very fortunate to have the opportunity to work with Laura and Rupe to strengthen and grow DDB’s planning team.”

Meanwhile, Davies was previously the strategy director at Saatchi & Saatchi, and she brings in over a decade of experience working across telecommunications, government, FMCG and retail in both New Zealand and abroad. 

“Rupert and Charlotte are both brilliant strategic minds but also genuinely wonderful people. When Rupert reached out, I was only weeks away from having my daughter and while many agencies would have ended discussions there, Rupert and the team at DDB didn’t even blink. They have waited patiently for me to finish my maternity leave and their flexi policies have made it so easy for me to step into this role as a new mum – it’s wonderful to finally be here,” Davies said.

DDB Aotearoa Chief Strategy Officer Rupert Price said, “Charlotte has proven herself to be an incredible strategic mind and her promotion is well-deserved. I’m looking forward to working with Charlotte in running the Planning team and ensuring our strategic product continues to go from strength to strength.”

He added, “Charlotte and Laura are already proving themselves to be a formidable double act and I’m excited to see what we do together as we continue to build New Zealand’s biggest and best agency strategy team.”