Tag: Appointments

Philippines – Joe Dy, a multi-awarded creative leader with almost two decades of experience in the creatives industry, returns to creative and CRM agency Wunderman Thompson as its new chief creative officer in the Philippines.

Dy had been with Wunderman Thompson, then a part of J. Walter Thompson’s leadership team back from 2012 to 2014, in which he helped the team win a Gold Lion and acquire a foothold in some of their biggest clients today. 

Most recently, Dy has held the same position of chief creative officer at integrated marketing communications firm Mccann Worldgroup Philippines, where he helped guide the agency into becoming one of the most awarded agencies in Asia. Dy has led his team to win Gold Lion at Cannes and the country’s first three Golds at the APAC Effies, along with several other honours. 

In his new role, Dy will be partnering with Wunderman Thompson’s CEO Golda Roldan in steering the business and driving its growth engine from the creative end.

Commenting on his return to the agency, Dy said, “I’ll always be thankful for the trust, opportunities, and growth I received, and I hope to bring some of that experience when I rejoin Wunderman Thompson. Wunderman Thompson has already been doing some really good work in the past couple of years and I’m really excited to see what we can achieve together.” 

Roldan shared that a lot of what the agency has achieved the last few years was built on foundations that he and Dy helped establish under their late mentor and friend, former J. Walter Thompson’s CCO Dave Ferrer. 

“My intention was to bring in a leader from a big agency who can help us as we grow. Someone with a solid creative reputation, who would fit our culture, who has a passion for great work, for awards, for the business and most importantly for the people. And Dy fits all the criteria perfectly,” said Roldan.

Wunderman Thompson said that the move will also see Dy reuniting with former teammates and fellow ‘Creative Guild Hall of Famers’, Wunderman Thompson’s ECD Brandie Tan and Deputy ECD Tin Sanchez, forming a solid creative leadership team.

“We go way back, and the chance to collaborate with them again was a major factor in my decision. I’m thrilled to be teaming up with two strong, well-renowned and well-travelled creative leaders who share my drive and passion for great work,” said Dy.

Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia – Advertising agency FCB Malaysia has announced a slew of creative promotions, namely Wang Ie Tjer, the new head of creative, Jonathan Chan and James Voon, the new associate creative directors, Megan Ong and Wong Ching Sin, the new senior copywriters, and Ahmad Hafidz, the new senior art director.

Headlining the new creative promotions and hires is Tjer, who had previously held the title of creative director at FCB Malaysia. He has been a member of the agency’s senior team since 2018, and his consistent delivery has been integral to FCB’s continuing success in Malaysia. In his new role, Tjer will be leading a creative team of 30, spearheading the creative efforts on key clients and new businesses, while also representing the agency as a thought leader at industry events and media engagement.

Explaining why the agency decided to double down on its creative talent, Shi Ping Ong, FCB’s co-owner and CEO, shared that coming out unscathed and profitable after two difficult years of the pandemic speaks volumes of the people in the agency and their grit and tenacity during adversity, and they are now in a fortunate position to return the commitment by investing in their future.

“Why Tjer? Because he is very, very good! Since becoming part of the team, Tjer has always been putting his head down to focus on nothing but doing great work, and his can-do approach to even the most challenging tasks has honed him to become a true leader who the folks in the agency can always look to for inspiration and guidance,” said Ong.

In addition to the promotions, the agency has also made numerous new creative hires, including Suah Boon Chuan, the new associate creative director, Amin Taib, the new senior AV producer, Lim Poh Yeng, the new senior art director, and Muhammad Fadhli, the new senior graphic designer, as well as Tan Lai Kuen and Muhammad Syamim, the new graphic designers.

“If there’s one positive that we can take out from this pandemic, it’s that we’re certain that the future of FCB Malaysia is in very, very good hands,” said Ong.

Australia – Global comparison platform Finder has appointed David Meier, former director of product and experience design at global Buy Now, Pay Later (BNPL) company Zip Co, to be its new global vice president of product design.

Meier is an experienced leader in product design for technology-led businesses. During his stint at Zip Co, Meier has played a crucial role in the release of ‘Tap & Zip’, a product that drove exponential transactional growth. Aside from this, Meier has also headed up product design for property marketplace Domain.

In his new role, Meier will be assisting Finder as it continues to roll out new products and services, focusing on Web 3.0.

Meier said, “We’re literally on the cusp of a financial revolution, where the democratisation of finance lays on the horizon, and we’re in a position to help our customers join the dots.”

Finder has also announced the appointment of David Chen, former head of strategy and operations at AI-driven document intelligence platform Sypht, as its new chief legal officer.

Frank Restuccia, Finder’s founder and global co-CEO, believes that Chen and Meier’s backgrounds in high-growth technology-led businesses made them both standout recruits. 

“The next 12 months will be crucial to gaining competitive advantage in Web 3.0, and we know we need to move quickly to stay ahead of the market. We want to make sure we have the best talent and leaders on board to help us move towards not only helping people save money but invest and make money too,” said Restuccia.

In November 2021, Finder has promoted Taylor Blackburn, former head of media relations for ANZ, as its new head of public relations for the ANZ region.

Australia – Advertising agency Howatson+Company has appointed Hoang Nguyen, former director of digital and engineering at digital firm Appscore, to be its new chief data and technology officer.

Aside from his stint at Appscore, Nguyen has also held the role of executive director of engineering at full-service advertising company CHE Proximity, and the technical director at strategic design consultancy Deepend. He has also led teams and designed architectures for several blue-chip enterprises such as NAB and ANZ, Samsung, and Telstra, among others. 

Commenting on his new role, Nguyen said, “I’m excited to bring data and technology together, especially as privacy management becomes critical in meeting compliance requirements and managing brand reputation.”

Chris Howatson, Howatson+Company’s CEO, believes that great experience requires both data and technology as intertwined enablers, live and constantly talking to and responding to each other. 

“Hoang joins us with a remit to expand our technology offering and has already made an incredible impact to our clients, especially in the areas of data privacy, security, and marketing technology,” said Howatson.

Singapore – Camera and social media company Snap has announced the appointment of two new senior creative leads, namely Gareth Leeding, the new head of creative strategy for APAC, and Haran Ramachandran, the new head of creative strategy for ANZ, aimed at driving its commitment to creating best-in-class creative campaigns on the platform.

Leeding has previously held the role of executive creative director at socially-led creative agency We Are Social’s UK office where he built a creative department, co-founded WAS Sport, and won over 70 global awards for work across leading brands including Adidas, Audi, Google, and YouTube, as well as Lego, and Lidl, among others. In his new role, Leeding brings over 18 years of experience, and he will be the first dedicated creative leader in Snap’s APAC team.

Meanwhile, Ramachandran has also relocated from London where he was most recently the creative lead for telco Three Mobile and PR agency The Academy. In his new role, Ramachandran will help develop breakthrough creative campaigns for the ANZ region.

Commenting on his appointment, Leeding said, “I am excited to be joining the Snap team at a time when the APAC community is experiencing such growth. As Snap continues to push the boundaries with AR and the camera, there is immense creative opportunity, so I’m pumped to be leading the APAC region as we redefine what’s possible.”

Ramachandran also said, “We know local consumers are typically cynical of brands, which is why we need to look at ways to engage them in new and exciting ways. The chance to do that on a platform like Snapchat with a great audience and great tech is super exciting.”

Kathryn Carter, Snap’s general manager for APAC, said, “We couldn’t be more thrilled to welcome both Gareth and Haran to our APAC and ANZ teams. Their visionary creative strategy will continue to help our partners create campaigns at a scale that millions of Snapchatters across the region love.” 

In 2021, Snap has launched its first-of-its-kind environmental pledge in AR to protect Australia’s Great Barrier Reef, which has brought the Hyundai Kona small SUV into millions of Australian living rooms and even partnered with Common Ground to create a series of immersive sleep stories from First Nations storytellers using AR.

Singapore – Media and digital marketing communications company dentsu in Singapore has announced three strategic senior appointments for the market, namely Preeti Mascarenhas, the new chief strategy officer, Florian Lacombe, the new head of operations, and Prema Techinamurthi, the new managing director of creative group.

Mascarenhas joins dentsu Singapore in the newly created role of chief strategy officer for the market where she will lead strategy for key integrated clients, pitches, and solutions development, while in another newly created role of head of operations for the market, Lacombe will oversee the market’s business transformation journey and lead operational excellence for Singapore.

Meanwhile, as the agency’s new managing director of creative group, Techinamurthi will now be responsible for delivering excellence and driving business growth, as well as transformation to further unlock the full potential of the creative service line. Over the past year, she has been at the forefront of dentsu Singapore’s ‘Force for Good and Growth’ commitment in her work for Float Foods and Sustenir, as well as for dentsu Gaming, where she led the account wins of two new regional gaming clients and also led dentsu’s largest regional client, Toyota, in launching a regional e-sports tournament in partnership with ONE E-Sports. Techinamurthi’s appointment comes after former managing director Phil Adrien, who will now be focusing on his new role as the CEO of creative for APAC.

According to Dentsu Singapore, its performance for 2021 has been fuelled by its focus on strategic sectors, such as health and gaming, and sustainable growth; further integration of its offerings; and a strengthened eco-system of partnerships in the region, including with Google and Salesforce.

Prakash Kamdar, dentsu’s CEO for Singapore, shared that the formula for dentsu Singapore, with or without the pandemic, has been one built on purpose, discipline, and trust.

“We made a number of senior appointments across the business last year and I am delighted that we are now able to further augment our Singapore leadership bench strength as we kick-off 2022 with three strategic business appointments in Preeti, Florian, and Prema to bring us to new heights,” said Kamdar.

Just recently, dentsu APAC has also appointed Kamdar to be its new CEO for dentsu Indonesia, which is an addition to his current role. This follows the step down of former CEO Maya Watono who will be taking on a role in a newly established holding company for Indonesia’s State-Owned Enterprises.

Australia – Australia-headquartered creative technology company Enero Group has appointed Abigail Dawson, former brand director at creative agency Special Group Australia, to be its new group communications director.

The appointment of Dawson comes after the step down of former communications director Lu Borges, who has been at the helm of BMF’s and the Enero Group’s communications for the past eight years. Borges will now be relocating to the US, where she will take on the role of head of brand and communications for MullenLowe. 

At Special Group, Dawson led the agency’s business development and PR strategy and management. Also most notably, Dawson brings with her an extensive background in journalism where she held multiple senior reporting and content roles at trade publication Mumbrella. 

In her new role, Dawson will be responsible for leading both the internal and external communications and brand marketing for creative agency BMF, digital creative agency Orchard, and Enero Group globally. She will be reporting directly to Steve McArdle, BMF’s CEO, and Wai Kwok, Orchard’s CEO.

Commenting on her appointment, Dawson said “I am absolutely thrilled to be joining the Enero family and working closely with the kind and talented people at BMF, Orchard, and Enero. For 25 years, BMF has been an iconic name in advertising, pushing the boundaries of creativity and delivering some of the most effective work in the world and I can’t wait to contribute to that legacy.”

McArdle commented, “We are over the moon to have Abby join the BMF family. She has fantastic experience building a great agency brand, deep knowledge of the industry, and the natural talent and charisma to help take BMF, Orchard, and the Enero Group to the next level.”

On the other hand, Special Group has announced that its current team lead Tiffany Hunter will be replacing Dawson in leading the agency’s PR in the near term.

“Tiff is a super experienced Team Lead who has worked with Special on and off since we opened the doors. She is wonderful. She knows us and the business inside out. And I have no doubt that you will enjoy working with her,” said Lindsey Evans, partner at Special Group Australia.

Indonesia – Creative and communications network dentsu in APAC has appointed Prakash Kamdar to be its new CEO for dentsu Indonesia. This is in addition to his current role as CEO of dentsu Singapore. Kamdar commences the role in February this year.

The appointment follows the step down of former CEO Maya Watono who will be leaving the business at the end of January to take on a role in a newly established holding company for Indonesia’s State-Owned Enterprises. 

During Kamdar’s stint at dentsu, he first held the position of CEO at Isobar Singapore, where he took the business from strength to strength prior to being promoted to CEO of dentsu Singapore in 2019. In the Singapore role, dentsu said he has successfully led the agency through a significant turnaround, having worked with various clients including Standard Chartered, PayPal, Starhub, Intel, and Mastercard, as well as Salesforce, among others.

Wendy Clark, the global CEO of dentsu international, believes that Kamdar is a highly-regarded digital native leader and his authentic management approach has guided the Singapore teams through the pandemic, resulting in the country’s highest-ever client satisfaction ratings with the business on track to return to pre-pandemic growth levels by the close of 2021. 

Commenting on his appointment, Kamdar said, “I have big shoes to fill and this is a challenge for the new year that I can’t wait to get started on.”

Dentsu APAC has also announced the recent promotion of Wisnu Satya Putra to CEO of Creative at dentsu Indonesia, and Arshad Rahman to CEO of CXM at dentsu Indonesia, which are said to be pivotal to dentsu APAC’s strategy to lead the Indonesia team into its next phase of growth.

“Together with industry veterans Wisnu and Arshad, they [will] bolster the leadership team and bring fresh perspectives and a wealth of experience to the business,” said Clark.

Seoul, South Korea – Electronics company LG Electronics has appointed Hyoeun Kim, former vice president of beauty brand Olay for China, to be its new vice president for its LG Electronics Marketing Center.

Kim brings with her 22 years of experience in consumer goods corporation Procter & Gamble (P&G). She began her career with P&G in 1999 and developed her brand-building expertise in multiple geographies, including China, the USA, Singapore, and Japan, as well as Korea. Kim has gained experience working across eight different brands of the global FMCG giant, namely Olay, SKII, Head & Shoulders, Swisse Vitamin, and Wella.

In 2016, Kim joined Olay China and was credited with their business turnaround by renewing the premium product innovation and reshaping the brand proposition, and transforming the brand into a high growth player in the category. Kim was also behind the brand’s award-winning ‘Fearless of Age’ campaign, alongside creative partner Grey Hong Kong.

Commenting on her new role, Kim said, “I am now ready to take on a new challenge and looking forward to working with a world-renowned, premier Korean brand – LG Electronics. It is an honor for me to be a part of this journey.”