Tag: Asia Pacific

Singapore – International B2B marketing specialist Fifth Ring has announced the expansion of its Asia team with the appointment of two new marketing specialists and four promotions within the Singapore office. These moves reinforce Fifth Ring’s commitment to delivering industry-leading marketing expertise for clients across Asia.

The firm has welcomed Celestine Quek as account director and Shivani Shinde as account manager to the team in Singapore. Moreover, it has also promoted Parada Sritaragul as head of campaign, Jaralyne Cueto as campaign manager, Disha Puspitasari as senior campaign executive and Carolyn Kok as account manager.

Quek brings a wealth of strategic communication, marketing, client account management and cross-functional team leadership experience. With a proven track record of delivering integrated campaigns for leading brands globally, she will be instrumental in driving client growth and elevating our offering in Asia. 

Meanwhile, Shinde joined Fifth Ring with a broad knowledge of the maritime industry and a strong digital marketing background. She will be a key part of the account management team to deliver impactful marketing campaigns for clients.

Lastly, beyond the campaign team, Carolyn Kok, in her role as account manager, will now oversee client growth, maintain client relationships and provide strategic counsel to clients looking to drive successful B2B campaigns.

For Fifth Ring, its elevation of the global campaign team based in Singapore will enable the team to drive meaningful campaigns for clients regionally and globally. 

Debbie Ho, regional director at Fifth Ring Asia, said of the appointments, “The addition of Celestine and Shivani significantly strengthens our capabilities in Asia. Celestine’s experience managing global accounts, combined with Shivani’s knowledge in our specialist industries will be invaluable in helping our clients achieve their marketing goals and own their space in Asia’s dynamic B2B landscape.”

Meanwhile, Ian Ord, founder and chief executive officer at Fifth Ring, commented, “We are thrilled to recognise the dedication and talent of Parada, Carolyn, Jaralyne and Disha. Their promotions reflect their commitment to excellence and their contributions to the continued success of our global team.”

Fifth Ring’s client base in Asia includes manufacturer of high-value-added products in advanced stainless steel, special alloys, and industrial heating Alleima, provider of ammonia-to-power solutions Amogy, owner and operator of maritime transportation assets and specialised services AET and smart energy solutions provider CHINT.

Singapore – Dentsu has announced the dual appointments of Ganga Chirravuri as president of product and development for APAC and Matt Farrington as president of investment and trading for APAC. These strategic appointments underscore dentsu’s commitment to driving innovation and growth through its client solutions across the APAC region.

Chirravuri joined dentsu in March 2023 and has been instrumental in delivering a new and improved holistic product stack, elevating the competitiveness of our solutions. He brings nearly 25 years of experience in product management and technology development and has deep, unmatched knowledge of both media and customer platforms.

In his new role, he will continue to drive the strategic development of dentsu’s digital and data product portfolios, leading a team of talented engineers to build scalable, commercial solutions that are customisable to client, brand and market needs and drive incremental performance improvement of client’s ad dollars.

Prior to dentsu, he has extensive experience in software and product technology with a decade at Verizon and more recently as chief product officer at Shopmatic and chief technology officer at CtrlShift.

Speaking on Chirravuri’s appointment, Christina Lee, chief technology officer at dentsu APAC, said, “Ganga’s future mindset, creativity and long-term perspective has enabled the delivery of a product suite designed with client needs at the core, driving the effectiveness and competitiveness of our offering. More broadly, our Data & Technology evolution continues at pace and I’m delighted Ganga will spearhead this important agenda and unlock future, sustainable growth for our clients across all our brands in media, creative and CXM.”

Meanwhile, Farrington brings over 20 years of experience across modern and emerging media ecosystems having worked at agencies including GroupM and Omnicom, occupying leadership roles across both Australia and Singapore. He joins dentsu from Yahoo where he was the head of Partnerships & Investment, APAC and led the investment strategy for Yahoo AdTech across the region, including establishing multi-market holding group partnerships and overseeing all deal and investment activities.

For his new role, he will focus on developing high-quality media investment solutions that deliver sustainable, value-enhancing outcomes for clients, build leading capabilities within our agency disciplines, and strengthen relationships with key partners. His extensive background positions him well to lead and develop commercial partnership frameworks that create value for all stakeholders – its partners, teams, and clients.

Prerna Mehrotra, chief client officer and CEO of media for APAC at dentsu, said, “New media ecosystems are redefining the possibilities of what media can deliver. To win in this unbounded era we need to integrate media with data, technology, creativity, production, sports and entertainment to create new, deeply connected propositions that accelerate new revenue streams for clients. This starts with having visionary talent who fundamentally understand the complexity of the landscape, the opportunities for growth and how to realise it. It starts with our craft.”

He added, “These appointments are testament to that dedication to craft and innovation; Ganga and Matt’s roles mark a significant step-up, not only in capability but in our ability to deliver integrated, ‘++’ solutions for clients, delivering unparalleled impact by being client-first, craft-led and digitally ahead,” added Prerna Mehrotra.”

Singapore – A new report by Adobe has revealed that brands across the region lead other geographies in generative AI deployment and are set to make major near-term organisational changes to scale up adoption.

According to the report, almost two in three (65%) executives in the region have implemented full or initial AI solutions and pilots, making them further along than peers in the US (61%) and Europe (55%). Within the APJ region, deployment is highest in Japan (82%), followed by India and Asia (both 72%).

While executives are confident their generative AI rollouts are advancing to plan, many day-to-day users hold a different view. Across APJ, just 4% of executives say their organisation doesn’t have a formal generative AI adoption strategy, which rises substantially among practitioners. The gap is widest in Japan, where 4% of executives concede there is no formal strategy compared to 37% of practitioners.

The report also confirms that amongst APJ brands, generative AI integration is the digital initiative most likely to support growth in 2024. As a result, most brands are developing guidelines for responsible use of AI (73%) and aligning a comprehensive AI roadmap with broader business goals (71%).

Brands also anticipate significant changes to operating models and organisational structures to support generative AI adoption. Across APJ, the majority intend to reorganise teams and functions to accommodate AI usage, which is highest in Asia (80%) and India (74%). Plans to introduce AI leadership roles are also highest in these regions (India at 78% and Asia at 73%).

Lastly, executives are also prioritising initiatives to help employees upskill and provide clear guardrails for using generative AI. The top-rated is advanced AI skills training for key staff (47%), followed by policies for ethical and secure generative AI usage (45%).

Moreover, over two-thirds of APJ brands also believe that generative AI will transform data analytics and management more than any other part of the organisation. They also recognise that data capabilities and governance are a cornerstone capability, with most planning to increase investment in customer data management in 2024. Within APJ, this is highest in India (75%).

Duncan Egan, vice president for digital experience marketing in Asia-Pacific and Japan at Adobe said the disconnect can stem from viewing generative AI through a different lens.

“For some senior executives, adoption can be as simple as signing a vendor contract, while practitioners are likely better acquainted with the realities of having the right data, tools and training. However, we expect this disconnect to narrow in 2024, with brands poised to strengthen organisational readiness for generative AI deployment,” he said.

Egan further added, “Generative AI offers a clearer path to unify data, predict customer needs, and deliver more relevant and time-critical content. However, the study shows that despite widespread adoption intentions, only some brands are recalibrating to seize these benefits, putting them ahead in the race for consumer loyalty, conversion, and trust.”

Meanwhile, Simon Dale, vice president of Asia at Adobe, commented, “Asia-Pacific and Japan are at the forefront of generative AI adoption, with brands recognising its transformative potential across their organisations. We’re seeing a strong commitment to restructuring functions and teams, introducing AI leadership roles, and prioritising employee upskilling to fully harness the power of this technology.”

He added, “There is also a clear understanding among businesses that generative AI adoption goes hand in hand with matching data capabilities and responsible governance. We anticipate an increase in investments in these areas that will drive innovation and transformation across the region.”

Singapore – foodpanda has announced its strategic partnership with Cybersource, a Visa Solution, to elevate their customer checkout experience through frictionless payments in more than 10 markets across Asia-Pacific. 

The latest partnership with Cybersource enables foodpanda to elevate their customers’ payment experience through secured payment processing. This includes seamless checkouts without the need for customers to enter their 16-digit credentials when paying for their deliveries. It also removes the hassle of updating their card details on foodpanda’s platform when their card expires or undergoes replacement.

Cybersource, Visa’s agnostic global payment and fraud management platform, is part of Visa Acceptance Solutions. It provides on-demand pre-integrated payments solutions on an open payment platform. This allows platform partners to connect to a robust ecosystem of technological tools to quickly build solutions that can create seamless commercial experiences, help scale businesses, satisfy customers, and future-proof operations.

This partnership aims to reduce the costs and complexities of technical integrations, increase speed to market, and will help to improve foodpanda’s authorisation rate while offloading them from PCI-compliance requirements in multiple markets. 

This will not only help foodpanda deliver commercial and technological benefits, but also allow them to achieve operational simplicity with one consolidated platform to view transaction information across multiple markets. 

Luc Andreani, chief operations officer at foodpanda, said, “We understand the importance of delivering a great experience for our customers which is why we have partnered with Cybersource to leverage on their integrated payment solutions with local acquiring so that our customer checkout journey is intuitive and secure. Their proven security, stability and uptime has allowed us to focus on what matters – which is having our customers’ favourite meals, groceries and parcels delivered straight to their door.” 

Dan Parsons, head of Cybersource for Asia-Pacific at Visa, commented, “As an open payments platform with global reach, our integrations simplify the payment experience by streamlining multiple payment gateways, helping our partners accelerate their business growth. This partnership is just the beginning, and we will look to collaborate in other areas and deliver tailored and secure solutions that can enable further customer growth as well as enhanced customer experience for foodpanda.”

Singapore – Around 82% of leaders in Singapore believe AI will make or break businesses, with 78% of them think traditional CX will be dead–and saying 2027 will mark the “death of traditional CX”. This is according to the latest data from Zendesk.

The report envisions a future where CX organisations become leaner, faster, and more effective, with AI at the helm to streamline processes, personalise engagement, and handle a higher volume of customer interactions. 

Moreover, the evolution will likely lead to smaller CX teams, as 74% of industry experts across Asia-Pacific predict a downsizing due to AI’s ability to simplify operations while delivering high quality service to customers. Industry experts in Singapore record the most muted response (63%) to the predicted downsizing, compared to their regional counterparts in Australia (84%) and India (73%). 

Industry leaders in the region also believe AI is changing everything about CX, with leaders in Singapore agreeing the least (85%) with this sentiment compared to leaders in India (92%) and Australia (90%). Despite this, leaders in Singapore show optimism for the future of CX in the next three years: 87% believe voice-activated self-service will be an option for all channels; 85% say integrated text, voice and video interactions will be combined into a single experience; and 81% believe all CX solutions will have built-in generative capabilities. 

Around 84% of them also believe there will be a fivefold increase in customer service interactions by 2027, with leaders confident in AI’s ability to maintain quality service. This shift will make operations smoother, decisions sharper, and boost market competitiveness. As AI takes over routine tasks, it will enable teams to be more efficient and control costs, allowing for effective scaling of business operations even as customer interactions increase. 

In Singapore, 70% of industry leaders believe all channels will be powered by AI in three years, with AI-assisted support augmenting human agents by providing real-time diagnostic assistance and recommendations. 

“Industry leaders will transform into customer-centric visionaries, equipped with a deep understanding of the solutions that truly resonate with customers. They will proactively apply AI, using real-time data for better customer experiences, and collaborate across departments to safeguard customers and swiftly innovate based on AI insights. This transition will empower CX leaders to deploy AI strategically, make smarter decisions, and effectively guide their teams through emerging tech trends and evolving customer behaviours,” Zendesk said in a press statement following the report’s release.

The report also notes that AI’s impact on CX organisations promises to be significant, reshaping the roles of agents, admins, and leaders to prioritise specialised skills. In fact, 86% of industry leaders in Singapore say agent roles will evolve to cross-functional roles for more holistic service, with three-quarters believing they will only handle complex escalations that involve in-depth troubleshooting. Agents will see their roles expand to include enhanced technical skills and a deeper understanding of technology.

Lastly, admin roles are on the cusp of a big change, becoming proactive guardians of business operations. They will increasingly rely on AI copilots and smart tools to manage automated interactions and to make AI-driven improvements. 

“In their day-to-day, admins will keep a real-time pulse on the quality of agent interactions, refine automation, predict staffing needs, and implement workflows suggested by AI. They will need to master using AI to enhance team performance, employ no/low-code tools for automation, make data-driven decisions, and balance workload between humans and AI to meet customer needs. This evolution will empower admins to spearhead strategic advancements and maintain efficient, effective operations,” the report also added.

Speaking on the report’s release, Craig Flower, chief information officer at Zendesk, said, “In the near future, AI will play a role in all customer interactions, moving us beyond traditional, manual service to more advanced, technological-driven experiences. That’s why leaders are proactively adjusting their strategies now to navigate the anticipated changes and leverage AI to its fullest potential. A transformation won’t happen overnight, but there will be a steady progression that develops over time. It’s going to redefine roles and improve experiences for CX teams and their customers.”

Meanwhile, Maureen Chong, regional vice president, Asia at Zendesk, commented, “Consumers today have been clear about the imperatives in their interactions with businesses – an AI-assisted, personalised experience that’s consistent across all platforms. CX leaders across Asia Pacific are feeling the pressure to adopt AI into their CX organisation, with over 90% saying the pace of change is overwhelming.”

She added, “With only a quarter of leaders in the region describing their AI adoption as advanced, industry leaders are recognizing the gaps and taking steps to strengthen their CX. Key areas they are addressing – enhancing data security, investing in new CX technologies, expanding AI and automation in service delivery, integrating generative AI and optimising self-service support. Done right this won’t just help businesses weather ongoing economic uncertainties – it will, in fact, give them a competitive edge.” 

Singapore – Scott Beaumont, most recently the president for Asia-Pacific at Google, has announced that he is retiring from the company after being with the company for 16 years. For his role, he also stated that he will pass the role to his colleague Sanjay Gupta, most recently the country head and vice president at Google India.

In a LinkedIn post, Beaumont reflected on how Google is now at the forefront of an exciting new age of technology with AI, and how he had the privilege of invest his time differently in teaching, advising, leading and serving Google.

“It has been the most incredible experience whether in London, Shanghai or Singapore. I have thoroughly enjoyed experiencing so many different cultures, histories, languages and ambitions across both Europe and then Asia. It has been so rewarding to meet, advise, learn from and partner with a huge number of motivated commercial partners and customers, entrepreneurs, governments and NGOs,” he said.

Speaking on passing the leadership role to Gupta, Beaumont commented, “Since our first meeting five years ago, I have seen Sanjay’s drive to think ambitiously about how technology can be a power for good in the development of his home country: India. He now has the opportunity to pursue that same calling more broadly across Asia Pacific. I know Sanjay will do the position, his team and the company enormous credit and I look forward to supporting him in his early months.”

Beaumont first joined Google in 2009 where he first served as its managing director for partnerships in North & Central Europe. In 2013, he was elevated to the role of president at Google Greater China & Korea before getting promoted once again to be Google’s president in APAC in 2019.

Prior to Google, he was the executive vice president of alliances and partnerships at T-Mobile from 2000 to 2004. He then co-founded a tech startup Refresh Mobile and served as its CEO from 2004 to 2009. Outside of his leadership role, he also serves an advisory role for the popular racing team McLaren since 2021.

Hong Kong – Prudence Foundation, the community investment arm of Prudential plc in Asia and Africa, and Warner Bros. Discovery in Asia Pacific (WBD) are collaborating on a content series called ‘Decode with Prudence’ to help educate audiences on the planet, human lives and their livelihood. 

Through fact-based storytelling, ‘Decode with Prudence’ aims to provide informative, engaging content on current issues that inspire actions for a better and more resilient future. ‘Decode with Prudence’ will kick-off the series by targetting two key topics around the climate crisis – heat and air pollution.

Diana Guzman, chief sustainability officer at Prudential and chair of the Prudence Foundation said, “Prudence Foundation is committed to building climate and health resilience, working with our partners to implement programmes that protect communities from the impacts of climate change. We’re pleased to collaborate with Warner Bros. Discovery and leverage on their ability to reach millions of households in Asia.”

She added, “With Decode, we’re highlighting the importance of the individual and collective human action to address the climate crisis. We want to inspire people to action, using what they learned from the programme to keep themselves and their loved ones safe.”

Meanwhile, Tony Qiu, GM for Greater China & Southeast Asia at Warner Bros. Discovery, commented, “WBD has a long history with environmentally focused storytelling, with stories that educate our audiences and inspire action. We are pleased to partner with the Prudence Foundation on this initiative to help drive increased awareness of key topics affecting our society.”

The content series is available on Warner Bros. Discovery’s Southeast Asia and Taiwan TV channels and social media platforms, including Discovery Channel Southeast Asia, Discovery Channel Taiwan, TLC Southeast Asia, TLC Taiwan, and Discovery Channel Southeast Asia Facebook, Instagram and YouTube.

For this content series, global NGO Climate Resilience for All has come on board as a content partner for the topic of heat, to ensure accuracy of information related to the topic.

Kathy Baughman McLeod, CEO at Climate Resilience for All said, “One of the best ways to protect health and livelihoods from the impacts of heat is to build awareness, and campaigns like this are a great example of action communities everywhere can take.”

Singapore – With the hype for the 2024 UEFA European Football Championship–which will happen in a month away–continues across Asia-Pacific, new data from YouGov has revealed that football followers in Australia are most likely to have noticed event sponsors (57%), while half of football followers in Hong Kong (51%) and Indonesia (50%) say the same. In contrast, under two-fifths in Singapore and Thailand (38%) say the same.

In terms of recognising TV programme sponsors–meaning those shown during broadcast of football matches–about half of football followers in Thailand (51%) and Hong Kong (49%) have noticed such sponsorships, ahead of more than two-fifths in Australia (45%) and Indonesia (44%). However, only a quarter in Singapore (26%) say the same.

Meanwhile, in terms of recognising sponsors at the venue, about a third of football followers in Australia (35%) have noticed such sponsorships, ahead of a quarter in Hong Kong and Indonesia (both 24%), and closer to a fifth in Thailand (22%) and Singapore (18%).

Moreover, about a third of football followers in Australia (36%), Thailand (34%) and Indonesia (32%) have noticed sponsorships related to the team’s season sponsor, compared to around a quarter in Singapore (27%) and Hong Kong (25%).

Lastly, the data also shows that most football followers in Indonesia (57%) and Thailand (52%) would support their teams by buying products from their sponsors, with about an eighth (12-13%) expressing strong agreement.

Singapore – APAC brands stand to reap considerable rewards, with new data from Merkle showing that around 65% of APAC CX leaders who prioritise customer-centricity and use it as a metric for success have witnessed up to a 15% surge in customer retention and loyalty.

The report also notes that a notable 20% of these leaders have experienced even greater improvements. Likewise, APAC CX adopters have enjoyed significant benefits, with 56% seeing a rise of up to 15% in customer retention and loyalty, and 36% witnessing improvements exceeding 15%. 

It is also worth noting that successful CX organisations in APAC have well-integrated technology to streamline operations and enhance customer interactions, which is crucial for achieving seamless CX transformations. Moreover, APAC CX leaders are also noted to implement AI-driven CX solutions at a much faster rate than other groups. 

Chris Webb, chief operating officer at Merkle APAC, said, “APAC is at the forefront in many aspects of customer experience, showcasing innovative approaches and significant advancements. Brands in this region that are adapting their CX strategies are already seeing remarkable revenue growth, highlighting the immense potential in our markets.” 

He added, “While APAC CX Leaders are at the top in terms of CX leadership and principles, our findings also shed light on some areas for improvement. There is much to be done by APAC brands in the adoption of integrated technologies, and to amply prepare for a cookieless future. The need for greater collaboration among APAC CX Leaders as well as cooperation and coordination among departments and stakeholders in the utilisation of integrated technologies is imperative for enabling CX excellence in the APAC region.” 

Singapore – Food and grocery delivery platform foodpanda has launched its latest ‘Meal For One’ initiative, offering curated set menus designed for solo diners at lower prices.

With Meal For One, customers can now order single-person meals on the foodpanda app without a minimum order value and enjoy lower delivery fees, making it easier and more affordable to order food for one.

The feature is currently available in seven markets in Asia, namely Singapore, Malaysia, Hong Kong, Bangladesh, the Philippines, Cambodia, and Myanmar.

With close to 20,000 restaurants offering Meal For One menu options, this initiative will be reinforced and rolled out across the region in the coming months.

Additionally, the order process has been streamlined for minimum fuss and maximum convenience. Customers can access the Meal For One menu through a dedicated category on the app homepage, ensuring they can quickly find their desired items.

Furthermore, they can easily customise their drinks and sides with simple add-ons, reducing choice paralysis and simplifying meal decisions.

Talking about this initiative, Luc Andreani, chief operating officer at foodpanda, said, “More people in Asia are moving to urban areas and living alone for work. Meal For One is perfect for these solo diners, allowing them to order exactly what they need, without a minimum delivery order value.”

“It also caters to their busy lifestyles via curated and affordable set menus, reducing choice overload often experienced when browsing on food delivery apps,” he added.