Tag: UM

Singapore – UM, a global media agency network of IPG Mediabrands, announced its sixth global Impact Day, ‘Building a Better Future.’ 

Impact Day launched in 2016 and expanded globally in 2018, with volunteers across 50 offices in 40 countries. The yearly event, which was first introduced in 2016 under UM’s corporate social responsibility division, Better World, shows the organisation’s goal of dedication to the values of community and care. 

On Thursday, July 20, UM closed its offices across APAC, EMEA, LATAM and North America to partner with local charities, NGOs and community organisations. 

UM’s partners for this event include the Special Olympics Shanghai Team from China, FareShare, OzHarvest and Our Big Kitchen from Australia, the Indonesian Children Creativity Park Elementary School, Ecokaari from India, Free the Children Japan, Yayasan Generasi Gemilang from Malaysia, Young Focus Organization from the Philippines, MINDS from Singapore, the Goodwill Store from South Korea, NangKang Harmony Home from Taiwan, and Precious Plastic Bangkok from Thailand. 

Kasper Aakerlund, the president for UM APAC, said, “As we continue to focus our efforts around the three key pillars of equity, sustainability and wellness, it’s truly heartening to see the very real impact that our people are making in their local communities. Many of these relationships with NGOs and social service programs have been building over a number of years now, and the impact of connecting and collaborating at a human level within your local community is incredibly powerful.”

Meanwhile, Eric Guzman, vice President, global operations and head of Better World, also commented, “At UM, we are on a constant quest to make a difference in the communities in which we live and work, and Impact Day is a meaningful part of that commitment. We’re honoured to partner with community organisations around the world that are driving genuine change through the lens of equity, sustainability and wellness.”

Singapore – Universal McCann has named former chief innovation officer at EssenceMediacom Sasha Savic as the company’s new chief executive officer. In his new role, Savic will galvanise the UM community around a growth mindset and leverage the agency’s industry-leading data capabilities to optimise and energise its go-to-market strategy.

In addition, he will be setting the vision for the agency’s global growth while also overseeing the strategy, product, operations, and management of clients including American Express, Honda, Johnson & Johnson, Levi Strauss, Nestlé and Sony, amongst others. 

Savic will report directly to Mediabrands Global CEO, Eileen Kiernan.

Prior to his C-suite role at EssenceMediacom, he also served as the chief executive officer for the US team at MediaCom for a decade. He also served several leadership roles at McCann New York and UM, leading media efforts for brands like Procter & Gamble, Microsoft, Intel, and Mastercard.

Speaking on his appointment, Savik stated that building connections is what drives him– from strengthening the community and partnering with clients to connecting consumers’ needs to a brand’s purpose and value.

“The role of media is timeless, and I am excited to join the global leadership team at UM, the undisputed leader in unlocking the power of data to enhance the purpose and longevity of brands,” he said.

He further added, “I look forward to bringing together content, data and brand meaning to create sustainable, long-term growth at UM, where I first got my media chops and fell in love with this industry.”

Kiernan commented, “A tenacious and dynamic leader who cares deeply about people, clients and community, Sasha is a consummate relationship builder who has driven results for some of the world’s most iconic brands. Sasha’s love of the business complements our strong, values-driven global culture, and his will to win and commitment to excellence will supercharge how we show up in the marketplace and for our clients. We are thrilled to welcome him back to the IPG family.”

Sydney, Australia – UM’s consultancy practice, Business Analytics Engine (BAE), announces the appointment of Nimesh Chaturvedi to the newly-created role of associate director of data and technology. He brings in a decade of in-depth experience working with data and analytics in cloud-based platforms.

His immediate remit is to lead the data and martech solutions for brands realising the value of their first-party data and data science and optimising audiences and paid media, to drive growth.

Most recently, Chaturvedi was the senior data and analytics manager with Middle Eastern telco Etisalat and prior to that data and analytics manager with Reprise Digital MENA (Middle East and Africa). 

His experience creating digital transformation strategies and roadmaps is crafted from a deep understanding of a range of martech tools and technologies, including CDP, attribution solutions and first-party data warehousing in cloud and on premise, to help brands become more digitally mature.

He has also gained a solid understanding of identifying and proposing digital transformation strategies. working across a very diverse media landscape, audience base and level of digital maturity in sectors including retail, CPG, banking, telecom, travel and hospitality, media and entertainment.

Chaturvedi reports directly to Michelle Yeates, head of BAE and will work alongside Adam Krass, chief digital, data and technology officer at UM.

Speaking on his appointment, he said, “Opportunities to build and evolve a MarTech practice don’t come around very often. My mission is to help BAE deliver results for our clients through innovative growth strategies based on precision targeting high value audiences. In a world of big data, that means technology and analytics.”

Meanwhile, Yeates said that Chaturvedi’s appointment supports BAE’s ambition to invest in the critical skills and expertise to accelerate clients’ digital transformation and roadmaps beyond cookie-based media.

“With experts like Nimesh on our team we now have additional capabilities to build on the strong data & analytics foundations of the practice. His expertise futureproofs BAE’s offering, providing unparalleled experience in first-party data; propensity modelling; and digital measurement through privacy first clean rooms, ultimately unlocking client growth through more effective audience targeting and measurement,” she said.