Tag: Appointment

Australia – Following its global expansion, unified retail platform Zitcha has announced the appointment of Josh Forsyth as its new sales lead for APAC.

In addition to growing Zitcha’s Australian and New Zealand business, Forsyth will help lead its push across Asia to empower retailers to monetise their onsite, offsite and in-store media assets.

These assets include websites, social media, above the line advertising, display, search, email and in-premise, allowing brands in APAC to target audiences using first-party data and personalisation to drive incremental revenues for both retailers and brands.

Forsyth joins Zitcha after more than eight years working in senior sales, partnerships and operations roles for major adtech businesses including Yahoo, The Trade Desk and Vistar Media, where he helped educate and implement clients on new and emerging programmatic channels.

Speaking on his appointment, Forsyth said, “Zitcha is a market leading retail media platform that continues to innovate to meet the needs of retailers and brands that understand the value in building and operating effective retail media networks. Having watched its success from afar for a while now, I’m delighted to join the team as we capitalise on existing Australia and New Zealand opportunities and turn our sights to the phenomenal opportunities that exist across Asia.”

Meanwhile, Nick Hinsley, chief revenue officer at Zitcha, commented, “Retail media in Australasia and Asia represents a significant, but so far relatively untapped opportunity for retailers, wanting to more efficiently and effectively leverage their own media assets for brand advertising partners. The appointment of Josh is the exciting next development in Zitcha’s continued success locally and our move into Southeast Asia and beyond.”

“While we are a technology business at heart, it is the expertise of people, such as Josh, who put customers first and become trusted advisors for retailers in this new and fast growing retail media space. This depth of talent and capability within Zitcha enables retailers and brands to navigate what is the third and biggest wave in digital advertising after search and social, and we’re delighted Josh is on the team,” he added.

Hong Kong – VML has appointed Alfred Wong as chief creative officer of VML Hong Kong. He has started his post and will report to Maggie Wong, CEO of VML Hong Kong. 

Formerly employed by Apple’s custom agency Media Arts Lab Shanghai (MAL), Wong is a creative leader. He had a key role in producing influential work that changed Chinese culture while serving as executive creative director of MAL.

At Leo Burnett Hong Kong, Wong became executive creative director. For three years in a row, his office was named among the top three Hong Kong agencies. After moving to Shanghai, he worked as Chief Creative Officer at ADK, reshaping the firm with integrated thinking and its creative standards before joining MAL Shanghai to work at Apple.

With over 200 awards, including two consecutive Gold Cannes Lions, Wong held the #2 spot in Asia for creative directors. The international advertising festivals, including Cannes Lions, D&AD, One Show, Clio, Tribeca X, ADC, London International Awards, Andy Awards, Adweeks, Spikes Asia, AdFest, LongXi, Hong Kong Kam Fan, and EFFIE, have honoured this creative leader in the digital, film, and print categories. 

Speaking about his appointment, Wong said, “The fusion of technology and creativity truly excites me. It empowers us to push the boundaries of what’s possible, creating work that is fresh and out-of-the-box. I am thrilled to have the opportunity to join forces with Maggie and the team, working together to create something remarkable.”

Meanwhile, Maggie Wong stated, “Alfred joins us at such an exciting time for VML, where we are forging a new path as a growth partner – one that is equal parts creative agency, consultancy, and technology powerhouse. Alfred’s passion for creativity and his ability to push boundaries make him an exceptional addition to our team. Under his leadership, we will continue to nurture an environment that celebrates creativity, empowers talent and produces awe-inspiring work.”

Singapore – Initiative, the Fame and Flow agency within IPG Mediabrands, has announced the appointment of three new senior client-facing roles, with Hatty Wetzki as the regional client business director, Lucy Jacobsen as the group client director, and Sheena Deutscher as senior communications design director. 

In her new role as regional client business director, Wetzki will help in rolling out a global strategy for Nike, building fame and flow across its key markets around APAC. She brings exceptional brand knowledge and expertise to the region for the agency, having joined Initiative after nearly 11 years as marketing director at Nike EMEA. 

Also joining Initiative is Jacobsen, who was previously the APAC lead for the Google Cloud portfolio at EssenceMediacom. As the new group client director, she will utilise her deep knowledge of B2B performance media to lead the Amazon AWS business for Initiative APAC, staying at the very forefront of digital, product, and technology innovation. 

Rounding up the new hires is Deutscher, who is set to join the LEGO client team. She joins Initiative from her previous role as a client-side placement at Chanel through the luxury brand’s agency, PHD. In her new role as senior communications design director, she will apply her global cross-category experience to deliver strategic global priorities and planning excellence to the LEGO brand around APAC. 

The three new Initiative client leadership appointments will be based in their Asia-Pacific RHQ office in Singapore and are effective immediately.

Commenting on the new hires, James Smyllie, president of Initiative APAC, said, “We could not be more delighted to welcome Hatty, Lucy, and Sheena to the Initiative APAC regional team, where they will partner with flagship clients such as Amazon, Nike, and LEGO. These recent appointments are testament to the strength and quality of the client partnerships we build at Initiative and the resonance of the Fame and Flow proposition that continues to attract and retain market-leading brands and exceptional talent.” 

Paris, France – Publicis Groupe has named Nannette LaFond-Dufour as chief impact officer. She will directly report to Arthur Sadoun, the head of Publicis Groupe’s management board. 

In this newly created global role, LaFond-Dufour will be in charge of all of the group’s ESG commitments, including Publicis’ ambitious SBTi-approved climate targets and concrete action plans for diversity, equality, and inclusion. She will also be in charge of major initiatives, including Working with Cancer and the Women’s Forum for the Economy and Society. 

Lafond-Dufour will oversee a dedicated team tasked with connecting the group’s ESG professionals around the world. They will work together to develop and implement a coherent impact strategy with clear and specific performance metrics. Their goal is to improve and grow existing Publicis programs while also integrating new ones, which will benefit both teams and clients.

As a new member of the management committee, LaFond-Dufour will answer directly to Arthur Sadoun, the head of Publicis Groupe’s management board. She will work closely with Agathe Bousquet, who is the president of Publicis France and the management board’s guarantor of ESG obligations. 

LaFond-Dufour most recently held the positions of chief sustainability officer and chief client officer at McCann Worldgroup. 

Speaking about the appointment, Sadoun said, “With the Directory+ we are delighted to welcome Nannette to the Group.Through our transformation, we have outperformed the industry on all key business and financial metrics over the past four years. But we know that for our growth to be truly sustainable, at all levels, it must also be responsible. That’s why we’ve also worked to lead the way with our best-in-class ESG initiatives. With Nannette at our side and her proven expertise in implementing concrete changes at the heart of some of the world’s largest companies, we are convinced that we can go further and faster in our ESG agenda, for the good of our employees , our customers, and our planet.” 

Meanwhile, LaFond-Dufour expressed, “I am very admiring of the transformation carried out by Publicis, demonstrating both its ability to anticipate the future but also to prepare for it by making social and environmental commitments. At a time when evolution is more necessary than ever, I am delighted to join a visionary, courageous and agile team.” 

Singapore – Multi-channel advertising platform StackAdapt has announced the appointment of Ryan Nelsen as chief marketing officer.

In his role at StackAdapt, Nelsen will lead a world-class team and take responsibility for all aspects of marketing, including product marketing, brand growth, digital strategies, communications, public relations, experiential marketing, and design.

Nelsen brings 17 years of strategic marketing expertise and leadership to his role in support of StackAdapt’s mission and remarkable client and company growth. His impressive leadership journey spans four key posts, including strategic marketing leadership roles at both Qualtrics and MX. 

At Qualtrics, he served in product marketing, ABM, field marketing, and enterprise marketing. While there, he was instrumental in launching the Qualtrics Customer Experience business, which quickly became the fastest-growing product line and contributed to the company’s first $1 Billion US in revenue. In his role as executive vice president of marketing for MX, Nelsen built a world-class team and led all aspects of marketing and brand, including product marketing, demand, communications, field marketing, and creative.

Nelsen’s move comes at a time when StackAdapt is experiencing rapid global expansion and its recognition as a leader in AI and machine learning within the advertising industry. His role will be crucial in leveraging this momentum, positioning Nelsen perfectly to further innovate and scale the company’s global impact, competing against established tech giants.

Speaking on his own appointment, Nelsen said, “StackAdapt is setting the pace in AI-powered advertising technology. I’ve been incredibly impressed with the team, the technology, and the value StackAdapt is delivering to clients and brands. With a perfect product-market fit and our unmatched speed of innovation, I’m excited to build as we serve the best agencies and brands around the world.”

Meanwhile, Vitaly Pecherskiy, co-founder and CEO of StackAdapt, said, “We are excited to add Ryan to our leadership team as we continue to deliver on massive client demand around the world and scale StackAdapt. He is a proven winner with the strategic experience and record of success we need to further round out our executive team and hit our growth goals.”

Singapore – The LEGO Group has unveiled two new additions to its Asia Pacific leadership team with the appointment of Cedric Roose as general manager for India and Emerging Asia and Nina Patricia Da Costa as general manager for Singapore, Malaysia, and Travel Retail. 

The appointments underscore the company’s commitment to expanding its presence and driving growth in the region by establishing strong leadership for the recently created business units of Singapore, Malaysia, and Travel Retail (SMTR), and India and Emerging Asia (IEA).

In his new role as general manager for the IEA business unit, Roose will leverage his strong and experienced leadership track record to drive sustainable commercial growth and regional expansion in IEA, with a strategic focus on India and Indonesia.

Prior to his promotion, he served as the LEGO Group’s country manager for New Zealand. A LEGO Group veteran, Roose has spent the last 15 years gaining a wealth of experience in sales, regional commercial development, and general management across Australia, Singapore, and New Zealand. Under his leadership, the LEGO Group’s New Zealand business unit achieved double-digit growth over the last six years. 

Meanwhile, Da Costa, as the new general manager for the SMTR business unit, brings over 17 years of invaluable experience in marketing, sales, and general management across blue-chip multinational organisations.

Her extensive track record as a strategic leader, adept at navigating both local and regional roles in diverse multi-channel environments and categories, positions her as a catalyst for innovation and growth within the business unit. She previously worked at LVMH, serving as the travel retail sales director for Moet Hennessy Travel Retail Asia Pacific Team. 

Da Costa’s appointment underscores the company’s commitment to fostering talent and driving forward-thinking initiatives, including spearheading our expansion efforts in the vibrant and dynamic travel retail category in Asia Pacific.

Speaking on her appointment, Da Costa shared, “I am thrilled to begin this new journey with the LEGO Group, leveraging my expertise in steering the Singapore, Malaysia, and Travel Retail business units and in contributing to the group’s ongoing success in this lively and rapidly evolving region. I am eager to embark on this new and exciting phase of my career, cultivating collaborative synergy within our teams and our esteemed partners as we collectively advance our mission of empowering individuals through the transformative power of play.”

In his appointment, Roose also said, “I am truly honoured and humbled to spearhead the newly established India and Emerging Asia business unit. The potential across India, Indonesia, and other countries in this part of the world is boundless, and I am eager to work closely with the team and our distributor partners to continue championing the LEGO® brand and foster immersive, high-quality play experiences for both children and adults alike.”

Both Roose and Da Costa will report directly to Claus Kristensen, senior vice president of APAC at The LEGO Group. 

Kristensen shared, “Cedric and Nina joining our APAC leadership team opens an exciting new chapter for us in Asia Pacific. Their expertise, coupled with their proven track records in driving innovation and fostering growth, support our ambition to remain at the forefront of the toy industry in the region. I am confident in their ability to lead their newly created business units as we inspire creativity, shape the future of play, and propel the LEGO Group forward in Asia Pacific.”

Singapore – MoneyHero Limited (“MoneyHero” or the “Company”), a Southeast Asia-based personal finance and digital insurance aggregation and comparison platform, has announced two significant additions to its senior corporate team. Liru Chan has been appointed as the company’s new group head of marketing, and Francois Picard has been named as MoneyHero’s new group head of operations, effective May 6, 2024. 

Chan and Picard will be based in the company’s Singaporean headquarters. 

Chan has taken on the role of group head of marketing, where she will be in charge of managing brand development and consumer marketing across MoneyHero’s operational regions and portfolio. Furthermore, she is positioned to make a substantial contribution to the company’s overall sales and customer engagement initiatives. 

Chan joins MoneyHero from Google (APAC), where she was responsible for strategy and growth for owned direct acquisition and sales enablement since 2021 as head of growth (owned user experience). Prior to working at Google, Chan had senior positions at PayPal, Edelman, and Visa, where she was head of marketing (Singapore). 

Picard’s new role as Group Head of Operations includes developing and improving the company’s operations across the organisation to support MoneyHero’s upcoming phase of growth as a publicly traded entity. 

Picard comes to MoneyHero from ShopBack, where he was the vice president of operations since 2017. In this role, Picard oversaw the advancement of ShopBack’s operational frameworks and customer service operations, leading a team of over 130 people and developing the platform in accordance with a growth strategy across 11 markets. Picard held leadership positions at Honestbee and Schneider Electric before joining ShopBack. 

Speaking about the appointments, Rohith Murthy, chief executive officer of MoneyHero, said, “On behalf of everyone at MoneyHero, I want to welcome Liru and Francois to the company. To build and support a world-class organisation, you need to attract and hire the best talent. The addition of Liru and Francois is reflective of MoneyHero’s consistent ability to do this, which is a critical component of our success and further differentiates us from our peers. With Liru spearheading our marketing strategies and Francois optimising our operations, we have strengthened two key departments with seasoned executives who will enable us to execute on our aggressive growth plans and drive shareholder value more effectively.”

Meanwhile, Chan, group head of marketing with MoneyHero, expressed, “I am thrilled to join MoneyHero at such an exciting time in the company’s history, as well as to join such an incredible team of driven, like-minded individuals. I want to thank Rohith, his leadership team, and the company’s Board of Directors for this fantastic opportunity. I am proud to represent MoneyHero’s mission to empower consumers across Greater Southeast Asia to take better control of their personal finance decisions, and I look forward to helping take this purpose-driven business to the next level.”

Speaking about his appointment, Picard stated, “It is an honour and privilege to serve as MoneyHero’s new Group Head of Operations. Rohith and his team have built an impressive organisation with a proven business model, strong growth drivers, and an impeccable reputation in the marketplace. This curated platform will play a major role in shaping the future of the digital economy in Greater Southeast Asia, and I am excited to be a valuable part of this journey.”

Singapore – Mediacorp, the Singaporean state-owned media network, has named Jacqui Lim as its new chief commercial officer to drive revenue growth and unlock new business opportunities for the company. 

With extensive experience in the media and advertising space, Lim will be instrumental in charting a roadmap for boosting revenue streams and developing a commercial strategy aligned with Mediacorp’s efforts to constantly innovate and augment its offerings for audiences and advertisers.

As the new CCO, she will lead the Commercial Group in revenue generation and client engagement, collaborating with business units and partners to provide targeted solutions across Mediacorp’s wide range of IPs and platforms.

Lim spent two decades of her career working in management and directorial roles for a number of media agency networks, like Publicis Media and Omnicom Media Group. She was most recently with Havas, where she served as the CEO of Havas Media Group and regional chief growth officer of Havas Group. 

During her tenure, the agency brands in Havas Media Group received accolades and recognition across various industry award shows.

Lim’s appointment will be effective on June 3, 2024.

Tham Loke Kheng, CEO of Mediacorp, said, “Partnerships are key to unlocking new commercial success. I believe Jacqui will bring her business and creative acumen to continue delivering innovative and targeted solutions for our clients across our wide range of content, talent, and platforms.”

Commenting on her appointment, Lim also said, “I am thrilled to join a forward-thinking company that is focused on securing its position as a leading integrated player in the competitive media landscape. I look forward to working with Team Mediacorp to deliver synergistic business results and provide the most effective, complete, and targeted solutions for our clients.”

Singapore – Customer engagement platform Twilio has named Chris Koehler as its new chief marketing officer to drive global marketing strategy. 

Koehler brings over 25 years of expertise in customer engagement and marketing technology and a proven track record of driving growth and innovation at industry-leading companies.

As the new CMO, he will oversee Twilio’s global marketing strategy, focusing on expanding brand awareness in its key markets and amplifying product innovation. He will also play a pivotal role in growing market share across Twilio Communications and Segment and driving messaging and positioning for Twilio’s customer engagement platform, which combines communications, data, and AI to unlock greater value for customers.

Koehler holds a degree in B.S. in marketing from George Mason University and an MBA from Georgia State University.

Prior to joining Twilio, he served as Box’s CMO, where he helped lead the company to surpass $1b in annual revenue in fiscal 2024. He spent more than 25 years leading marketing, customer success, solution consulting, demand generation, and enablement teams at Adobe Systems, E*TRADE Financial, SunTrust Bank, and Claritas. 

In his new role, Koehler will report directly to Twilio’s chief executive officer, Khozema Shipchandler. He joins the company’s expanded management team of recent executive hires, including Inbal Shani, chief product officer for Twilio Communications, and Thomas Wyatt, president of segment. 

Shani joined Twilio from GitHub, where she led core product management, strategy, marketing, and design as chief product officer. As the CPO for Twilio Communications, Shani is responsible for all research and development capabilities, product innovation, and resiliency and trust initiatives for the Twilio Communications business.

Meanwhile, Wyatt joined Twilio from People.ai, where he served as chief product and strategy officer. As the new president of segment, Wyatt is responsible for driving product innovation and go-to-market execution. 

Talking about the appointment, Shipchandler said, “What particularly impresses me about Chris is his no-nonsense style and hands-on approach. Chris’ strong background in product will help strengthen how we market and position our increasingly sophisticated suite of customer solutions in this next chapter of the company.” 

Also speaking about his appointment, Koehler shared, “I’ve long admired Twilio as an innovative, developer-first company, and the opportunity to help build the next generation of customer engagement is exciting.”

“Having interacted with Twilio products as a segment customer, I believe Twilio has a massive opportunity to combine its leading data capabilities with its world-class communications platform to deliver the kind of one-to-one experiences that brands have been trying to achieve for years, but few have realised,” he added. 

Australia – Adrián Flores, a global creative director, has been appointed as chief creative officer at Clemenger BBDO, marking another key milestone in the agency’s progress. The appointment will take effect on May 20, 2024. 

Taking on the opportunity, Flores is bringing his worldwide perspective of producing work to Clemenger BBDO at the nexus of brand, entertainment, and culture. 

Flores’s appointment marks the next stage in the development of Clemenger BBDO, adding to a slew of high-level hires made after CEO Dani Bassil returned to Australia in 2023 to lead the agency’s transformation. Under her direction, the agency’s strategic capabilities were extended to include connections, cultural design strategy, and customer experience (CX) with the hiring of Simon Wassef as chief strategy and experience officer. 

Additionally, the appointment of Anita Deutsch-Burley and Georgie Winton as managing partners and Anita Zanesco as chief growth officer, who is responsible for new capabilities and growth, strengthened the agency’s strategic pillars and drove the company’s growth.

After more than ten years overseas in a variety of creative leadership roles at Publicis New York and London, FCB New York, Marcel New York, and VaynerMedia, Flores returns to Australia. The NBA basketball player LeBron James and his business partner Mav Carter co-founded The SpringHill Company, which operates the brand consultancy section Robot in New York, where he most recently held a role.

Speaking about the appointment, Dani Bassil, Clemenger BBDO CEO, said, “The CCO appointment means we now have a leadership trio of Aussies – Simon, Adrián and myself – with deep experience across brand, digital and social, as well as global perspectives on the work and industry. We’re doing things differently, better, with more diversity, and challenging the status quo. That’s what these signings are about. We’re not just signalling an intention. We’re delivering on it.” 

“I have no doubt Adrián’s energy, talent, and modern way of building brands will have a huge impact on our work, clients, culture and agency. I’m ecstatic he’s coming home to join the Clems family,” Bassil added. 

Speaking about his appointment, Flores said, “Clems is iconic both at home and abroad for a reason. I’m extremely excited to be part of its next chapter alongside a truly world-class team that’s famous for making famous work.”