Singapore – Media agency Wavemaker has appointed Jenny Pham, former general manager of marketing and strategy at GTI Tourism, to be its new APAC head of media for Colgate-Palmolive.

In her new role, Pham will be based in Singapore, and will be responsible for leading the Colgate-Palmolive business in the region. In July, Wavemaker launched a new agency model for Colgate-Palmolive, creating an APAC hub in Singapore designed specifically to support the client’s business transformation agenda. The team will develop strategy and audience planning for the region across Colgate-Palmolive’s product portfolio, and lead execution through the performance practice established over recent years.

Pham brings with her great experience and a strong point of view around digital transformation, which will be invaluable as the agency partner Colgate-Palmolive into a new era of growth. No stranger to the group, she has previously worked in senior roles at GroupM agencies in Australia, including Essence Digital Global as VP client partner, MEC Australia as managing partner, and Mindshare as business director.

Commenting on her appointment, Pham said, “I am delighted to return to the GroupM family and for the opportunity to play a role in this transformative journey of building the hub for excellence with innovation and growth at its forefront.”

She continued, “I’ve long admired the brand’s work, particularly the Smile Strong campaign showcasing stories of real people who overcame seemingly insurmountable challenges through the sheer power of their optimism. I am excited to lead, inspire and champion optimism at Wavemaker!”

Meanwhile, Rose Huskey, Wavemaker’s chief client officer for APAC, said that they are thrilled to welcome Pham back to their agency group network with Wavemaker being the top choice.

“I am certain that with her strong digital knowledge coupled with her experience in managing brands in fast-paced environments, she will be building strong relationships where clients, teams and collaborators are empowered to achieve success collectively,” added Huskey

Gordon Domlija, Wakemaker’s CEO for APAC, commented, “I love Jenny’s energy, passion and drive to make a difference, it is inspiring and infectious. Jenny joins at a fantastic time, as we launch a new agency model for Colgate-Palmolive. Her leadership of the hub will accelerate our growth ambition for Colgate-Palmolive and further enhance Wavemaker’s position as the leading agency in the digital transformation space.”

In July 2022, Alban Dudek, formerly the chief digital and marketing officer at Omnichannel Retail Indonesia, has joined Wavemaker Indonesia as partner for e-commerce. In his new role, he will be responsible for leading e-commerce services for all Wavemaker Indonesia clients, from brand awareness to conversion on multiple channels.

Singapore – Creative and media agency VaynerMedia has appointed Marc Langenfeld as the head of media for Asia-Pacific, where he will serve as a strategic partner to clients, and help further build the agency’s integrated services in the region.

He will be reporting to VaynerMedia APAC Managing Director, Tim Lindley.

Langenfeld brings in over 12 years of experience in the APAC region. Most recently, he was the APEX regional lead at Publicis Media APAC and has worked with dentsu and Carat in various regional capacities. 

Speaking on his appointment, he said, “I was immediately drawn to VaynerMedia’s operating model, a truly integrated solution across creative, media, strategy and analytics. I cannot wait to work with the incredible clients and talent already at VaynerMedia and continue to build upon the growth of the media practice in APAC.”

Meanwhile, Lindley commented, “When we met Marc we knew we’d stumbled across a rare talent. His strategic thinking is second to none, and he partners that with deep technical expertise and an empathetic leadership quality that just makes you want to follow him and learn from him. Our integrated approach is key to driving relevance at scale, and with Marc leading the media charge I have no doubt that our growth and impact in the region will continue to thrive.”

Manila, Philippines – Creative and communications network dentsu in APAC has appointed Mark Gabriel Chaves (Mako), former client partner and head of media, creatives, and analytics at insights and consulting company Kantar, to be its new head of media for dentsu Philippines.

Chaves brings with him over two decades of experience across relevant fields of expertise in media research, strategic planning, analytics, and creative development. He will be returning to dentsu after 14 years, where he first worked at Carat Philippines in 2008, and three subsequent stints at dentsu Malaysia between 2010 to 2016 as communications planning director, chief insight officer, and most notably, general manager for innovations. 

Aside from his most recent role at Kantar, where he was responsible for the set-up, go-to-market strategies, and revenue growth of media and digital, social analytics, and business analytics, as well as oversight of creative capabilities, Chaves was also the general manager at Zenith Media Philippines.

In his new role, Chaves will be responsible for driving synergies for dentsu Philippines’ media brands and working closely with the heads of iProspect, dentsu X, and Carat brands to ensure a unified representation of dentsu’s media capabilities in the industry.

Commenting on his appointment, Chaves said “There’s more to building brands – chief of which is mutual growth as partners around a central transformational idea. Our CEO JC has brilliantly put together a team of experts to realize his vision for dentsu Philippines and I’m humbled to be seen as someone who can complement an already-strong team of innovators and brand-builders.”

Meanwhile, JC Catibog, dentsu’s CEO for Philippines, shared that Chaves is a big picture thinker and highly-motivated contemporary marketer who fundamentally believe that building brands is multi-faceted and hard work, and trusts the unique role of media. 

“All of us in the Philippines are excited to welcome Mako back to the dentsu family and look forward to working closely together in scaling our media business to new heights,” said Catibog.

In February 2022, Richard Reid, formerly the head of consulting, data, and performance at integrated marketing agency Iris, has also been appointed as the new regional integrated strategy partner at dentsu for APAC, where he will be responsible for driving integrated strategy development for dentsu’s key clients as well as new business opportunities across the region.