WE Communications Archives

Singapore – Global communications firm WE Communications has appointed Troy Lee as its senior director and head of sectors and Ayden Ong as its director and head of digital, experience, and Technology (DXT), and strategy.

The appointments are targeted at enhancing the firm’s Singapore leadership team, delivering value to clients, and steering the next phase of growth for the agency while strengthening its strategic integrated communications offerings.

In the new role, Lee brings with him over two decades of experience in strategic communications, reputation management, C-suite positioning, and crisis management. He is also a seasoned practitioner with experience in crisis and issues management at Temasek.

He will also play a lead role on the Singapore Tourism Board account and will provide senior counsel for WE Communications’ clients such as Capgemini, Johnson & Johnson, Honeywell, and Adobe.

Meanwhile, Ong was elevated from being the firm’s Associate Director of DXT. He has been with WE Communications for over two years and has played a key role in developing and growing its DXT team.

Ong will also lead the Singapore team’s integrated marketing, digital, and data capabilities for the agency’s clients, including its predictive data intelligence, content, creative, social, digital marketing and production teams.

“His ability to blend communications, digital platforms, data, creative and strategy together, has made him an invaluable partner to clients and brands that are transforming the way they communicate,” said Daryl Ho, managing director at WE Singapore.

Ho also added that Lee and Ong have extensive experience and diverse knowledge and believes that the two will be great leaders to the teams and incredibly valuable partners to their clients.

“Our industry has been in an extended transformative season, pre, during and post-COVID. The ability to make communications and marketing valuable again is truly a mix of art and science. It is no longer just about great storytelling, but how you blend the science in data and utilize technology to be extremely agile and efficient in building a brand,” he added.

Recently, WE Communications has also announced two new regional executive promotions for its APAC and EMEA businesses.

London, United Kingdom – Committed to global expansion and future growth, global integrated communications agency WE Communications has announced two regional executive roles for APAC and EMEA, promoting Avian WE group CEO Nitin Mantri to regional executive managing director for APAC, and WE’s UK managing director Ruth Allchurch to regional executive managing director for EMEA.

Mantri and Allchurch will both help in strengthening the agency’s operations in APAC and EMEA by overseeing client retention and business development, nurturing the teams of talents, and driving strategic growth initiatives through the development of new client services and capabilities.

The two new hires will report to the president of International and global chief operating officer Kass Sells, who oversees WE’s eight international markets and its affiliate network.

Speaking on Mantri’s appointment, Sells said that he has demonstrated his ability to develop teams and business operations that fuels the agency’s growth. Meanwhile, Sells considers Allchurch as a leader of action who will extend her knowledge to EMEA, after seeing her as an instrument for growth in their UK Business.

Sells added, “I’m proud of how each of these leaders has evolved at WE, developing their teams, building successful relationships with clients, all with an eye toward the future.”

Meanwhile, Melissa Waggener Zorkin, global CEO of WE Communications, said, “Our sector and services growth, expanded client partnerships, and acquisitions in these international markets have created an exciting inflection point for our business. We are well positioned to make strategic changes to our broader international leadership team that will enable us to build our blueprint for future growth.”

Mantri will maintain his Avian WE Group CEO title while Allchurch will continue to manage WE’s recent acquisition of Hopscotch Consulting.

Sydney, Australia – Global communications and marketing agency WE Communications (WE) has appointed two key hires for its Digital and Experience Technology (DXT) team in Australia.

The new appointees for the DXT team are Brian Keenan, the new head of strategy, and Mike Nikotin, the new art director. Both will report directly to Nichole Provatas, group head of the DXT team Australia.

The agency believes that the appointments will strengthen its integrated marketing services for clients, which include data-led creative, paid social, and performance marketing, as well as brand and content strategy, and influencer marketing, among others.

Keenan has previously worked as a senior vice president of planning and head of business intelligence for public relations firm Weber Shandwick. Throughout his career, Keenan has led campaigns for brands like ALDI, American Airlines, and IBM, as well as Mastercard. Keenan will now be responsible for analytics, content, and brand planning, as well as agency IP for WE’s DXT team in Australia, bringing with him his 10 years of experience in creative and client strategy.

Meanwhile, Nikotin has previously worked as an associate creative director for media company Enigma Communications. Nikotin brings with him 20 years of experience in the creative and art direction sectors, working with agencies such as WiTH Collective, The Works, Allianz, and American Express, as well as Toyota, and Virgin Mobile, among others. His appointment will see him moving WE’s Creative Studio to greater heights, made up of animators, designers, editors, and producers.

Commenting on the two new appointments, Provatas said that the addition of Keenan and Nikotin to the DXT team further expands the senior bench as the team continues to invest in the specialist craft and respond to the changing nature of the way people consume content following the pandemic.

Meanwhile, Dan Woods, managing director of WE Australia, also shared “It’s paramount for communicators to understand how the world’s rapid motions impact consumer behaviors and embrace new media for brand storytelling. Brian’s strategic insights combined with Mike’s creative capabilities will further enhance our counsel and available capabilities to clients as we collectively navigate today’s fast-changing reality.”

Singapore – Global communications and marketing agency WE Communications (WE), has announced the appointment of former managing director of communications firm Edelman Daryl Ho as its newest managing director for Singapore.

In Edelman, Ho led the digital practice and transformation initiatives in Singapore. He served as a partner to Singapore government agencies and global and emerging brands, helping them transform their marketing communications through predictive audience intelligence, technology, and smart content marketing programs.

Ho is an agency veteran who brings more than 20 years of experience spanning digital consulting, integrated communications, and B2B marketing. He has held leadership roles across the APAC region, including eight years in China at international agencies such as Iris Worldwide, Zeno Group, DDB, and Tribal DDB.

For his new role at WE, Ho will be charged with overseeing the agency’s 50-member team of communications experts and specialists in analytics, content, creatives, and digitals. He will work together with Simon Pangrazio, managing partner of WATATAWA, a WE-owned company headquartered in Singapore, to serve local, regional, and global clients in the country. With WE’s Singapore leadership team, Ho will drive business growth strategy and innovation in the APAC market.

“I joined WE at a time where we are witnessing a disruptive change to not just our clients’ businesses but ours too. People’s expectations of brands are rapidly shifting, and there has never been a more important time for us to help our clients be great custodians of their customers’ needs and their brands’ reputations,” said Ho.

“WE has been paving the way for authentic storytelling and purposeful businesses for many years. Today I have the privilege of taking that to the next level, by connecting an arsenal of data, technology, platforms, and agile storytelling capabilities to help our clients rise above the noise in this new reality, as they transform technologically and culturally. I am eager, excited, and looking forward to bringing my diverse experience in marketing, communications, and technology to help our clients be greater contributors to society,” Ho added.

Meanwhile, Rebecca Wilson, executive vice president for Singapore and Australia remarked, “Daryl is a time-tested, collaborative leader with a proven record of driving business impact with clients. We are thrilled to have him on board. Our clients’ businesses are evolving rapidly, with an increased focus on digital-first approaches. Daryl’s expertise in modernizing communications and marketing through content, data, performance, and technology not only makes him a valued client partner but also an excellent fit to take our Singapore business forward and unlock our next phase of growth.”

Kass Sells, global chief operating officer and international president commented, “Singapore is a critical market for WE as we continue to grow our regional and global client relationships across the agency.”

“Daryl’s leadership of WE in Singapore will complement our strong APAC leadership team and enable us to deliver more impact globally,” added Sells.

WE Singapore’s client partnerships span core sectors of technology, health, consumer, and corporate, with clients including BlackBerry, Elsevier, Lazada, and Lenovo among others. The agency has also recently begun new partnerships with big-picture organization Community Foundation of Singapore and Asia’s futuristic school PSB Academy