Tag: Managing Director

Singapore – foodpanda in Singapore has recently announced the appointment of Bhavani Shankar Mishra as its new managing director. Formerly the senior director of operations at foodpanda, Bhavani will oversee all aspects of foodpanda Singapore’s operations in his new capacity. 

Moreover, he will lead the company’s commitment to innovation and service excellence, ensuring customers continue to have access to diverse choices and services at competitive prices.

Bhavani holds eight years of regional leadership experience at foodpanda, driving large-scale business transformation across APAC. Since joining in 2018 as part of the logistics team in Thailand, he has played a key role in optimising operations, enhancing customer experience and implementing solutions to improve efficiency. In addition to his tenure at foodpanda, he held prior roles at multinational corporations in tech.

He also held logistics and operations roles in foodpanda since 2018 where he took care of fleet management, warehouse operations, and customer satisfaction in Thailand and various APAC markets. He also has over a decade of experience working in multinational corporations like Amazon and ABB.

With extensive experience leading team teams across all 11 markets, Bhavani is well-positioned to guide foodpanda Singapore’s efforts to enhance customer experience, strengthen support for merchants and delivery partners, and boost industry competitiveness.

Speaking on his new role, Bhavani said, “foodpanda is more than just a delivery platform, it’s a service that is part of everyday life in Singapore. As we navigate changing consumer behaviors, a dynamic market, and evolving technologies, my focus is on enhancing the consumer experience on the platform through greater convenience, accessibility and reliability. I look forward to steering foodpanda’s continued growth and driving exceptional experience for all in our delivery ecosystem.”

Singapore – Audi Singapore has appointed seasoned executive Martin Bayer as its new managing director, tasking him with steering the brand through its milestone shift to a fully direct-to-consumer retail model.

As the new MD, Bayer will oversee Audi Singapore’s transition to a fully direct-to-consumer retail model, the first of its kind for the brand globally. He will also be responsible for shaping the company’s omnichannel business strategy and managing its operations following the launch of ‘Audi House of Progress Singapore’ and a new online retail platform.

Bayer, who has been with the Audi Group for over 26 years, joined Audi Singapore in February 2025. Previously, he served as director of sales for Latin America and Eastern Europe at AUDI AG, overseeing sales, aftersales, and profitability across 30 markets. He also led direct sales initiatives in Brazil and Argentina, managed the transition to battery electric vehicles, and introduced new showroom concepts in multiple locations.

During his tenure at AUDI AG, Bayer held various roles in brand, product, and sales, including leading product marketing and sales for the Audi A4, A5, and Q5 in Germany. He also managed financial services operations, restructured VIP customer sales, and oversaw product marketing for Audi Italia, focusing on growth and long-term planning.

Commenting on his appointment, Bayer said, “I am excited to be stepping into the Managing Director role at Audi Singapore and joining at such a promising phase of our business. With my cross-functional expertise, global experience, and strong network across the Audi Group, I am confident of continuing Audi Singapore’s success together with the team in this new era.” 

Bayer’s appointment follows Audi Singapore’s shift to a direct-to-consumer business model and the opening of Audi House of Progress Singapore on 13 February 2025. The new flagship showroom and lifestyle space, now open at Cross Street Exchange, is designed around four pillars—performance, lifestyle, sports, and dining.

Australia – Global commerce company Mars United Commerce has appointed commerce marketing leader Kelly Wearmouth as managing director for Australia and New Zealand (ANZ) as the business continues its transformation at the forefront of the evolving connected commerce ecosystem.

In her new role, Wearmouth will shape and execute Mars United Commerce’s regional operations, strategic direction and growth, including service expansion through development of new offerings that meet evolving client needs, continue to drive performance and growth by turning every brand experience into a connected commerce opportunity.

The appointment comes after the company joined the Publicis Groupe in September 2024 after rebranding from The Mars Agency to reflect its transformation as an innovation-driver, full-service partner across the entire commerce marketing spectrum.

Wearmouth brings 18 years’ experience leading and innovating in senior roles with prominent global companies including Unilever, Microsoft and Telefonica. 

She joins from Amazon, where she spent 10 years in Global, US, UK and ANZ-market roles, including delivering Amazon’s first global advertising agreement and launching its first global advertising campaign. As general manager of Amazon Ads in ANZ, Wearmouth built a $100M+ business across all Amazon advertising products including Twitch.

Speaking on her new role, Wearmouth said, “I am delighted to join the team at such an exciting and transformative time for the company. With a strong foundation in the ANZ market and the ongoing integration across our Publicis Groupe partners, there is unrivalled opportunity to drive innovation and growth for our clients. I look forward to working alongside this uniquely talented team to help our clients achieve their ambitious goals and navigate the evolving commerce market landscape with confidence.”

Meanwhile, Darren Keen, CEO International Markets at Mars United Commerce said, “I am thrilled to welcome Kelly as our new Managing Director for Mars United, ANZ. Her deep local market expertise, combined with world-class commerce and leadership capabilities, makes her the perfect fit to drive our continued success in the region.” 

Darren added, “Kelly joins us at a pivotal stage in our company’s exciting evolution, having joined the Publicis Groupe in Q4 2024. Her leadership will be instrumental in supporting our clients’ growth ambitions, ensuring they thrive in an increasingly dynamic market. We look forward to the impact she will bring to our existing talented team.”

China – Global omnichannel media agency Assembly has appointed Karen Ho as its first managing director for Greater China, reinforcing its commitment to expanding in the region and driving client growth. 

In this newly created role, Ho will drive Assembly’s growth in Greater China, supporting clients operating or investing in the region. She will lead initiatives to advance product development, talent acquisition, and technology innovation across the agency’s offices in Mainland China, Hong Kong, and Taiwan, ensuring they are positioned to maximise client impact.

Additionally, Ho will enhance cross-market collaboration and develop integrated solutions to support clients’ local and global ambitions. She will also oversee key client relationships, including Mandarin Oriental Hotel Group, APM Monaco, Clarins, and American Eagle Outfitters.

With over 20 years of industry experience, Ho has a proven track record of driving growth and delivering results. At Initiative China, she led market expansion for major clients like Volkswagen Group China, Bridgestone, and GM Ultium, earning the agency multiple industry awards, including Agency of the Year. Her expertise in team building and performance-driven leadership positions her to steer Assembly’s next phase of growth.

Commenting on her appointment, Ho said, “I have long admired Assembly for its bold approach to innovation and commitment to excellence. I resonate deeply with the agency’s proposition to Find the Change to Fuel Growth, something I have been committed to fulfilling throughout my career. I’m energised to partner with their talented teams and clients to unlock new growth opportunities in this diverse and fast-evolving region and drive our next chapter of growth across this diverse and dynamic Greater China region.”

Ho’s appointment aligns with the Assembly’s goal to strengthen APAC leadership and deliver market-specific solutions. Following Vivian Mok’s elevation to North Asia managing director, Ho’s addition reinforces the agency’s commitment to in-market expertise and regional innovation.

Richard Brosgill, APAC CEO of Assembly, said, “Karen is a visionary leader with unparalleled market insights and a true appetite to build. Her leadership will be pivotal as we invest strategically into the Greater China region and look ahead to a new chapter of growth as we continue to deliver campaigns that drive both brand and business impact.”

Australia – Global marketing and media consultancy Ebiquity has announced the appointment of Paul Murphy as managing director of its Australia and New Zealand business. 

Headquartered in Sydney, Australia, Paul will report to Leela Nair, managing director of APAC, and will be responsible for leading the company’s strategy and business operations in the region.

Under Paul’s leadership, Ebiquity will continue to deliver strategic value to its clients, elevate the company’s profile, and expand and progress its ability to support marketers in achieving effective and responsible advertising. 

Paul brings over 25 years of experience in the media industry across agency, consultancy, and marketing. His career includes leadership positions such as managing director at iProspect Australia, chief media officer at Cummins & Partners, and national media manager at Carlton & United Breweries (CUB), Australia. 

Speaking on his appointment, Paul said, “I’m thrilled to have the opportunity to work with Ebiquity at this time of seismic industry change. Advertisers have never been more aware of their impact and responsibility than now, and Ebiquity is uniquely placed to support them achieve effective and responsible advertising. I look forward to connecting with as many people as possible in my new capacity in 2025.”

Meanwhile, Leela commented, “The Asia-Pacific region is a key market for us, and we are delighted about Paul’s appointment. He is a highly respected executive, and his appointment strengthens Ebiquity’s capabilities in the media and digital space.”

Lastly, Ruben Schreurs, global CEO at Ebiquity, commented, “We are thrilled to welcome Paul to the Ebiquity family. His appointment reflects our commitment to best serve our clients’ needs, help them improve media investment decisions for better business outcomes and in doing so, create a better media world together with their media agency partners.”

India – FleishmanHillard has appointed Madhulika Ojha as managing director of its India operations, tasking her with driving the agency’s growth, strategy, and transformation in one of its key markets.

Ojha brings nearly 20 years of strategy consulting expertise, specialising in large-scale transformation programs that drive market share growth, enhance shareholder value, and improve operational efficiency through technology. Most recently, she was executive director of EY India’s Strategy and Transactions advisory team, where she guided C-suite leaders across diverse industries.

Her career includes leadership roles at global firms such as Capgemini, Deloitte, TCS, and Tech Mahindra. Ojha has also advised Fortune 500 companies across financial services, consumer, automotive, and life sciences sectors, with experience spanning Asia, Europe, and the Americas.

Based in Mumbai, Ojha will lead the strategy, operations, and growth of FleishmanHillard’s India offices. In her new role, she will report directly to Joanne Wong, Asia Pacific president and senior partner.

Wong said, “At FleishmanHillard, we focus on the role communications play in driving business outcomes and influencing C-suite priorities and board discussions. Madhulika’s expertise in post-merger integration, deals and transactions, and the financial communications ecosystem offers us growing opportunities to strengthen our position as a trusted advisor. As India’s business and financial landscape evolves rapidly, her leadership will enable us to better support clients in navigating this dynamic environment. We are thrilled to have her join us and lead the next phase of growth and transformation for our India operations.” 

Wong added, “Our focus for India and the broader APAC region in 2025 is to further solidify our unique position as a business-critical advisor, offering both high-level strategic counsel and robust implementation for clients. With management consulting leaders like Madhulika bringing greater strategic depth, combined with our trusted brand, leading global networks, and comprehensive offerings, we are confident in achieving this priority.” 

Also speaking on her new role, Ojha said, “The FleishmanHillard team in India has built an impressive foundation, and I’m excited to build upon their success. The agency’s commitment to delivering business-informed, technology-powered communications that drive tangible business outcomes aligns perfectly with my passion and professional experience. I look forward to contributing and collaborating with the team to help clients protect, transform, and grow their businesses through strategic communications.” 

Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia – Tan Ming Luk, most recently the chief commercial officer at Touch ‘n Go Group, has been named the new managing director of foodpanda Malaysia, which took effect on October 21.

With over a decade of leadership experience in commercial and operational roles across Singapore and Malaysia, he brings with him a wealth of industry knowledge, deep understanding of local markets and consumers, and a proven track record for driving business growth.

During his time at Touch ‘n Go, he oversaw the company’s top line revenue and spearheaded new growth opportunities. Prior to that, he served as the chief of staff and head of LazMall strategy and operations at Lazada and also served as its beauty category battle lead. He was also the previous country head for Malaysia and Singapore at OYO.

Speaking on his new role, he said, “I’m excited to join the company and be part of a platform that has a positive impact on the communities we serve, particularly in the growing gig economy. I look forward to working with the talented teams at foodpanda to deliver value to our customers, partners and the wider ecosystem, while staying true to the company’s mission of empowering local businesses and riders.”

Australia – FreeWheel, a Comcast company, has announced the appointment of Tess O’Brien as its managing director for ANZ. As part of her new role, O’Brien will work to connect FreeWheel, the global technology platform for the television advertising industry, with both buyers and sellers in Australia via FreeWheel’s streaming advertising technology.

She will be located in her hometown of Sydney after spending eight years in FreeWheel’s head office in New York, in both product and commercial leadership roles. Most recently she led FreeWheel’s buy-side business in North America, and was instrumental in the launch of a number of product innovations; including FreeWheel’s programmatic marketplace, identity and measurement solutions, and linear addressable capabilities.

Before her time at FreeWheel, she held various commercial and corporate strategy roles, including at Foxtel Media (formerly Multi Channel Network) in Australia.

Speaking on her appointment, she said, “I’m thrilled to return to Australia, during a period of immense change in the TV industry. Data and technology are fueling new ways to transact media and we are excited to bring our wealth of streaming expertise and market-leading technology to power new partnerships in this region. FreeWheel is the trusted platform powering the global television ecosystem because of our commitment to directly connect buyers & sellers while enabling advertising solutions that complement the premium viewer experience.”

Meanwhile, Thomas Bremond, SVP & CRO International at FreeWheel commented, “APAC is a key expansion area for us and Tess’s appointment demonstrates our continued commitment towards the region. Tess’s experience with global streaming platforms, programmatic and understanding of the Australian advertising ecosystem uniquely positions her to be a leader in the Australian market. We recognize the increasing need for global programmatic advertising solutions, and we’re delighted to support our clients and the entire premium video ecosystem in the region.”

Tokyo, Japan – Creative innovation company R/GA has promoted Anthony Baker to the role of managing director of R/GA Japan. In his new role, he will focus on expanding long-term strategic partnerships to deliver creative solutions for clients that drive business growth in new ways. 

This strategy centres on intersecting expertise in strategy, brand, design, communications, and technology in unique and effective ways. 

In the past year under Baker’s leadership as general manager, R/GA Japan has achieved double-digit profit growth, while expanding its workforce by 30%. R/GA will continue working with Japanese brands to compete locally and internationally, while helping global clients expand in the Japanese market and reach new audiences. 

Some of the company’s recent collaborations include a disruptive Black Friday activation with gaming company PONOS, leading to an expanded partnership across the US, Japan, Taiwan, and Korea and earning international recognition at D&AD. R/GA has also strengthened relationships with long-term partners Nike and Google and brands including Shiseido, Fujitsu and Sapporo focusing on digital transformation, product activations and loyalty initiatives.

Speaking on his promotion, Baker said, “It’s rare to find strategic agency partners who grasp Japan’s distinct culture and bring together diverse, global teams, and network capabilities. R/GA stands out in offering exceptional talent and applying network accelerator tools in AI, cloud computing, search intelligence, and data in both Japanese and English. I deeply appreciate R/GA’s trust in me and my team’s support, as we take our work and operations to new heights.”

Meanwhile, Michael Titshall, chief executive officer for Asia-Pacific at R/GA, commented, “Anthony has driven R/GA Japan to achieve new levels of success, delivering exceptional outcomes for our clients. Our collaboration with PONOS, and global brands like Google, Nike and Fujitsu in groundbreaking work, underscore Anthony’s exceptional leadership. We look forward to continued impact under his guidance as R/GA enters its next phase in North Asia.”

With more than 25 years of global experience as a digital lead and technologist, Baker co-founded R/GA Japan, establishing key client relationships and strategic partnerships across APAC, driving business growth and securing international accolades. Anthony moved to Japan in 2017 from R/GA London having expanded the London office from 30 to 350 members in six years with clients like Nokia, Microsoft, Google, and Nike. 

Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia – Daler Kendzhaev, most recently the head of Annalect Malaysia, has been promoted to managing director for investment and specialist solutions at Omnicom Media Group (OMG) Malaysia. In an exclusive interview with MARKETECH APAC, Kendzhaev said the new role will see him work with partners and vendors on the investment and partnerships front and manage OMG’s specialist solutions – Annalect, TransAct, and Digital Performance.

Kendzhaev’s newly created role comes as OMG believes it can unlock better solutions for clients through centring the capabilities of investment partnership, specialist solutions, and data under one leadership. 

He added that the role is about continuing the momentum OMG has already built by enhancing the agency network’s current relationship with partners through a connected and collaborative strategy, with a singular focus on delivering holistic and innovative products. This will be done while continuing in the area of future-facing data and tech solutions.

As OMG has great ambitions to drive momentum for clients and partners, Kendzhaev said the goal for the next six to 12 months is to improve the synergy between the investment and partnership teams and to meet clients’ needs in the rapidly evolving digital ecosystem.

“At Omnicom Media Group, we are poised to take an active role in developing and delivering the incremental value to our clients through these investment solutions, and also advancing our performance value for our clients,” he added.

Kendzhaev spent nearly four years as head of Annalect Malaysia during which he oversaw the increased adoption of Omni, Omnicom’s industry-leading marketing orchestration and insights platform, across OMG Malaysia and its agency brands. 

Under his leadership, Annalect was hungry for growth and adopted a first-mover mindset. “We treated Annalect in Malaysia like a start-up within a large organisation. We had great support from our regional teams that allowed us to achieve really great results in various areas within the group,” Kendzhaev explained.

Some of the initiatives Annalect have worked on include solutions around data automation and visualisation, as well as consulting and enabling marketing tech for brands. OMG also obtained Google Analytics (GA) partner status in Malaysia with certified specialist team to assist clients in their GA4 migration journey.

Understanding industry challenges and opportunities in media investments

When asked about the challenges and opportunities in the media investment space, Kendzhaev said one thing that stands out is the complexity of the measurement metrics in the industry today, which leads to other growth areas.

“In Malaysia, we don’t really have an aligned way of measuring media investments both in the offline world with different methodologies for mediums like TV, especially when it comes to the return on investment. Moreover, there is also a complete lack of measurement in digital, which leads to lot of dysfunctions in decision-making for advertisers,” he explained.

He added, “The upcoming changes in the digital ecosystem without [third-party] cookies is going to add complexity when it comes to digital measurement. Marketers and businesses, are urged to focus on understanding the true impact of media investments on brand equity, sales or other business metrics that are important.”

OMG believes that the cookieless future is one part of where the industry is headed in a privacy-first world. Effective advertising is powered by a variety of signals, with traditional signals like cookies being one of them. With traditional signals deprecating soon due to high privacy concerns, the industry needs to consider new developments like Google PAIR and The Trade Desk’s Unified ID 2.0.

“Let’s take advantage of it. With this connected role, we can move at a faster pace with our clients,” Kendzhaev added.

He also noted that industry collaboration would be ideal in forming strategies and ideas and getting consensus in measurement approach. Nonetheless, OMG has been working on different solutions surrounding connected measurement, future signals, and the digital ecosystem. 

“[These solutions] focus on solving measurement issues for various levels such as strategic management decisions down to the day-to-day operational tactics as well. That’s one of the key elements we are focused on in our business” he said.

Considering yet another delay from Google on phasing out third-party cookies, Kendzhaev explained that the whole idea behind the deprecation is to have a privacy-safe environment for advertising and not solely rely on traditional signals like third-party cookies. Given the news, he said marketers should continue progressing towards a privacy-centric approach to advertising.

“We are taking a comprehensive approach, which has been ongoing for a couple of years. Our approach starts with an audit, understanding where the clients are and the goals, they would like to achieve leveraging marketing tech. With that audit, we recommend solutions that are bespoke to the brand, that go across different elements: starting from having the right measurement framework in place, data collection and storage in the privacy-compliant way, to derive insights and improve consumer relationship,” Kendzhaev explained.

This ties in with building a privacy-safe environment and creating a unified view of the customer through UIDs. “Some of the clients that we work with have already started this journey. The delay also means advertisers have additional time to prepare for the change” he added.

T-shaped skill sets and optimism about the future

Talent is another key area Kendzhaev believes is crucial to the industry’s growth and it is important to have T-shaped skillsets in data and tech. “You want to understand how media works so you can bring value to what we do on a day-to-day basis and create solutions that will be more relevant to businesses today. Whether it’s the brands or advertisers or agencies or even vendors, we need to pay attention and invest more in terms of the talent, as well as upskilling them in understanding of what’s happening in the ecosystem that’s going to be critical,” he explained. 

Despite all these challenges, he remains optimistic about the ever-changing media landscape.

“At OMG, we are constantly on the lookout for new partnerships driving that unique proposition and incremental value for our clients. Everything that we do within our partnerships has always had elements of how we can create unique value for our clients and that’s something that we’ve been central to our approach,” he concluded.