Tag: Ajit Varghese

  • Maxus launches Kaleidoscope

    Maxus launches Kaleidoscope

    MUMBAI: Maxus India today launched ‘Maxus Kaleidoscope’, a unique mood based planning tool. Inspired by British physician Dr Liz Miller’s mapping principle of defining one’s mood, this web based tool will enable brands in India to align their communication basis the emotional and behavioural parameters of the audience.

    The tool measures parameters such as ‘Share of Mood’, ‘Receptivity of Audience’ and ‘Appropriate Moment’ for engagement from a brand and audience perspective. This is Maxus India’s second initiative on behavioural mapping the first being Moribus- first of its kind behavioural sciences lab by a media agency in partnership with the Mumbai University.

    The tool was launched by Maxus global CEO Lindsay Pattinson at a media round table with the entire Global Executive Committee, along with Maxus APAC CEO Ajit Varghese. The round table further discussed their vision for Maxus India in 2016 as well as how the domestic market contributes to the global brand.

    Speaking to the media about the tool, Pattinson said “With access to real time data, brands can move beyond demographics into behaviour consumer profiling. Maxus Kaleidoscope is a first step towards mood and receptivity profiling, so brands have an insight on what their target consumer is feeling, and build their communication around a ‘mood’.”

    “While IoTBLR Partnership and Metalworks form key components of the digital pillar, Moribus and Maxus Kaleidoscope are one of a kind tools that differentiate our data and analytics product. The content marketing pillar is an enabler that provides brands the opportunity for greater engagement with brands,” he revealed

    Commenting on India, Pattinson further added, “India is a benchmark market for us. In 2016, we are looking at a growth poised in double digits, fuelled by innovation within the trinity of data, digital and content. India is one of those unique markets where traditional media and digital media are growing together. We are most excited about developments in mobile media and advertising, and have a lot to learn from this mobile-first market. Our focus in 2016 is to develop a diverse skillset that will be future ready for all our clients and brands.”

     

  • Maxus APAC names Rose Huskey as client leadership head

    Maxus APAC names Rose Huskey as client leadership head

    MUMBAI: Rose Huskey has joined the Maxus regional team as Maxus APAC client leadership head.

     

    Prior to this, Huskey spent four years as the Maxus Vietnam managing director.

     

    Based out of Singapore, Huskey will be responsible for ensuring that the client’s experience is world class, integrated product and thinking into brand marketing as its leans into change in the ever evolving world.

     

    Huskey is an advertising executive with 18 years of experience across agencies, specializing in developing solutions to client’s challenges and bringing them to life in the online and offline world. Before joining Maxus, GroupM Huskey held positions at OMD in Vancouver, Canada and Future Shop where she was responsible for conceiving, managing and developing advertising and communication solutions.

     

    Huskey said, “The media industry has never been more exciting and interesting. The convergence of online and offline experiences means that people now have more choice than ever before on how, when and where they access the media they want. Maxus helps our clients leverage a wide spectrum of media opportunities to seize opportunities and fight off competitive threats.”

     

    Maxus Asia-Pacific regional CEO Ajit Varghese added, “We are very excited to have Rose join our regional leadership team. Given all her extensive experience in managing clients, building high performance teams and leading growth in one of our highest performing countries, she’s absolutely the right person to drive central leadership for our network clients and lead our teams to flawlessly execute across multi markets. At Maxus, we always aim to provide successful career options within the group for star performers and Rose certainly meets that criteria.”

  • “Content is a key pillar to provide breakthrough solutions for clients”: Kartik Sharma

    “Content is a key pillar to provide breakthrough solutions for clients”: Kartik Sharma

    He took charge in January this year and since then there has been no looking back.

     

    The humble and calm, Kartik Sharma, the managing director south Asia of Maxus, has had a great year, so far. Maxus India began 2014 on a high note with several breakthrough campaigns like “Power of 49” for Tata Tea, winning business worth Rs 300 crore, new senior management appointments. The ‘agency of the year’ title at Emvies 2014 was the cherry on the cake.

     

    Sharma has been with the company for seven years and has contributed to shaping the Maxus brand, creating client delight and helping Maxus dominate industry awards along with Ajit Varghese who has been appointed CEO Asia Pacific.

     

    The agency was named as the fastest growing media agency by RECMA and retained the title of the most “dominant” agency profile for the fourth year in a row in 2013.

     

     Indiantelevison.com’s Meghna Sharma spoke to the man, who specialises in communication planning, behavioural economics, media research, analytics and technology, to know what Sharma attributes these achievements to; his blueprint for the agency in the coming months, and industry’s forecast.

     

    Excerpts…

     

    How does it feel to be the ‘Media Agency of the Year’? What made you differ from the competition?

     

    It’s a fantastic feeling to be ‘The’ media agency of the year, something which we have been dreaming for over seven years. Emvies being the most coveted and respected forums in India, winning here gives us tremendous satisfaction as the award is a reflection of effective work done for clients. The difference over competition is our focus across all clients (we won a metal for 10 clients) and across various categories suggest Maxus’s focus across various disciplines which we have been building over the years. Some of our competitors have won only on a few clients.

     

    Your client Tata Beverages won the ‘Client of the Year’ for ‘Power of 49’ campaign. Were you expecting it? According to you, what made the campaign a success?

     

    We were expecting good wins for the ‘Power of 49’ campaign. The client of the year was a bonus. The reason for the success of the campaign was that it was based on some fantastic insights and impeccable execution. Also, the entire timing of the campaign enhanced the effectiveness of the campaign.

     

    It’s not even been a year since you took charge as MD, how has the journey been so far?

     

    The journey so far has been fantastic. I couldn’t have asked for more. Apart from winning the Emvies ‘agency of the year,’ Maxus has been winning consistently over the last few months. Consistent wins across award forum which includes Asian Marketing effectiveness awards for data analytics innovation, win at the WPP Atticus on analytics, recent wins at the MMA, Smarties (1 gold, 2 silver, 2 bronze), again Agency of the year at the Big Bang held by Ad club Bangalore, highest award at the WPPED cream awards clearly indicates the focus that Maxus has on doing effective work across clients.

     

    Apart from the wins, we have added several senior leaders to Maxus who have rich experience in building brands. This helps us do cutting edge work for our clients. Overall, it has been an extremely satisfying journey so far, with many more exciting projects for the rest of the year.

     

    The year 2014 has started on a good note for Maxus with over Rs 300 crore businesses. What would you attribute it to?

     

    Our record at pitches is at the back of integrated thinking that we bring to the table backed by great insight. Every pitch we work very hard irrespective of the size of the business. We spend a lot of time understanding the brand challenge which helps us craft integrated communication solutions and not media plans.

     

    Apart from this, a lot of emphasis is also on delivering ROI and measurement.

     

    You also bought in new people to strengthen the team. What will they be looking and what more can we expect from Maxus in the coming months?

     

    All our senior leadership’s single line mandate is to provide client delight. Till now they have done a fantastic job and even in the future the mandate won’t change. Our goal is always to be the trusted partner for all our clients.

     

    The agency recently launched Resolve. What was the idea behind launching it and what has been the response from the clients on it?

     

    In today’s complex and dynamic media environment the shift from media plan to communication plan was imminent. We saw this coming and started work nearly three years ago where Maxus India worked with the global leadership team to develop a proprietary framework called “Relationship Media” (RM). The heart of RM is the ever evolving and non-linear purchase pathway & media has a critical role to play in this pathway. Also the pathway changes dramatically by the category type.  All the standard industry tools cover very limited touch points and also do not factor the brand/category challenge. For example whether you are selling a financial product or auto, which are typically targeted towards say men, the standard industry tools will throw similar media choices. This is because they don’t address consumer pathways. They just look at plain demographics. Resolve was our answer to address this challenge where more than 60 touch points are captured, the pathway for each category is mapped and a multi touchpoint optimisation now made possible at the hands of our planners. It’s a revolutionary tool which uses primary research done by Point logic for 25 categories with a sample size of more than 2000 individuals.

     

    The beauty of the tool is that it recommends the media task for the brand (beyond just building salience) and shows the most influential touch points (beyond just reach) to achieve a particular task. We have received extremely positive feedback across clients as such a tool doesn’t exist and is able to add terrific value to their communication plans. 

     

    Digital, data and technology were identified as the key growth drivers for Maxus. What are the key areas for you?

     

    I mentioned earlier in the year that Maxus will focus on digital, data and technology and there is no change in that. Additionally, I would say content is a key pillar, which can provide breakthrough solutions for clients. The ‘Power of 49’ campaign is a good example of the same. Over the next few months you will hear many more case studies from Maxus.

     

    Today digital is no longer just another medium but has become an integral part of a marketer’s plan. What digital strategies do clients expect from Maxus?

     

    The digital landscape is an ever evolving area and most of our clients expect integrated full service solutions from us. In fact we currently do many things beyond digital planning & buying. We work in other areas such as owned media management, social, creative development, website development and even CRM.

     

    Name some of your best digital campaigns.

     

    The list is pretty large. In no particular order a few examples are our search work for Fiat which was appreciated and won many awards. Our campaigns for Tata Sky where we demonstrated the product features across various websites using the remote and not the status bar, Vodafone Selfie is a great example of meshing digital with activation and many many more.

     

    GroupM revised annual advertising expenditure (AdEx) estimates for 2014 to 12.5 per cent from 11.6 per cent. What are the reasons for it? Which sectors are spending and how is the year looking?

     

    The sentiment post elections have been positive with a new and stable government. One of the key sectors adding to growth is retail and more specifically e-commerce brands. They are aggressively investing in building brands in both traditional and digital media. Other industries like auto, telecom, financial services & FMCG are expected to increase spends.

     

    What are the challenges ahead for you and Maxus?

     

    Currently, one of the key ingredients of our past few years’ success has been the culture and that’s critical for us to maintain at all times. The key challenge is to maintain the culture of Maxus at all times. At the end of the day ours is a people business and if we can keep the culture intact which we define as PACE (Passion, Agile, Collaborative & Entrepreneurial) then we will be in a good place. 

  • Group M elevates Ajit Varghese to Maxus Asia Pacific CEO

    Group M elevates Ajit Varghese to Maxus Asia Pacific CEO

    MUMBAI: Media vet Ajit Varghese has more than one reason to celebrate. He has been going max at Maxus South Asia and his efforts are being recognised in his promotion to CEO Maxus Asia Pacifiic. The elevation, which comes into effect come new year 2014, will see Varghese shifting to Singapore, replacing Neil Stewart who has been sent upstairs as chief client officer Maxus Global.
    .
    Tha announcement was made by GroupM on Sunday 23 September.

    Varghese will work closely with Stewart in the transition period of six months, and will report into Group M CEO Asia Pacific Mark Patterson and Maxus Global CEO Vikram Sakhuja

    Over the last seven years, Varghese has been responsible for scaling up Maxus in India and South Asia, says the release issued by Group M. Under his leadership Maxus has achieved several distinctions. Maxus now has the best record in the industry in terms of new business wins and client retentions. It is the only media agency in India to be ranked ‘dominant‘ for three years in a row by RECMA for its outstanding overall performance.

    Ajit Varghese: Singapore is going to be his base come 1 Jan 2014

    Led by Varghese, Maxus has also dominated the industry award scene in India and South Asia, winning at Cannes, FOMA, Emvies, Goafest and recently retaining the Mobile Marketing Agency for the second year running at MMA.

    GroupM CEO South Asia CVL Srinivas said: “Ajit has been an outstanding leader for Maxus and a great ambassador for GroupM. He combines intellect with a passion for delivering the best value for his clients. He has helped create a very unique culture at Maxus and truly embodies the Maxus spirit. All of us at GroupM are very proud of his achievements and wish him the very best in his new role”.

    Maxus Global CEO Vikram Sakhuja said: : “Ajit has displayed exceptional leadership to make Maxus one of India‘s best and biggest agencies. With this promotion, I am very excited that Ajit will now lead Maxus APAC. I have no doubt that with his brand of entrepreneurial leadership, Maxus APAC will scale new heights. “

    Ajit Varghese said: “The last seven years at Maxus has been an exciting journey; we have built a strong portfolio of clients, secured their trust, delivered them a world-class product and picked up many accolades along the way. We have worked hard to develop our value proposition, building a Maxus spirit and culture that will help sustain and propel our business in the coming years. I’m now looking forward to learning and contributing more to Maxus and GroupM across the region and am sure the journey will be as exciting and fruitful in the coming years. India obviously continues to be part of my scope and will remain close to my heart”

  • Industry leaders remember their Moms

    Industry leaders remember their Moms

    MothersMoms.They are the most wonderful people in the whole world. From our victories to our failures, mothers are always besides us.

    She is our first friend, our first role model, our first inspiration. The memories that are closest to our hearts are the ones with our mother. Whether it is a ragpicker or a billionaire, when it comes to Maa, they are no different.

    Indiantelevision.com decide to chat with head honchos, editors, CEOs and owners alike from the media, advertising, broadcasting and television industry to get you their fondest ‘Mom memories.‘ Catch a rare glimpse of a never-before-seen side of these highly influential and top notch individuals.

    "I always have my mother beside me and I think almost everything you learn in life has a little bit of your mother in it. Every aspect of life has her undertones."

    Raghav Bahl 
    Network18 founder-MD

     

    "My mother is an inspiration to me and has always been. Her self-discipline, her high standards, her self-motivation are values that I really look up to and I have tried to inculcate these values in myself."

    Tarun Katial
    RBNL CEO

     

    "The only memory that I have of my mother is of her dying in the hospital. I was very young when she passed away. She was in a lot of pain and we really couldn‘t do much for her. She used to write very good poetry depicting her pain. I still have those handwritten copies of her poetry. Today, all the writing skills and abilities that I have is all thanks to her. The way she expressed her pain in poetry… she is my inspiration."

    Rajat Sharma
    India 
    TV chairman and editor-in-chief

     

    "My mother has been my only inspiration and she still works harder than anybody else. She has been very loving, caring and has brought me up to be the independent woman which I am today. She hails from a small city Hardoi in UP and was a graduate even in those times but she is modern in the way she thinks. I was a laid back, lazy person but she encouraged me and pushed me to work harder and whatever I am today, its because of her."

    Mona Jain
    Vivaki Exchange CEO 

     

    "According to me, my mother is the world‘s best cook. I fondly remember the day my mother was experimenting while preparing a cake for me. We were so engrossed in talking to each other that the cake was on fire! She has always been there for me. She was the one who packed my bags when I was going to Oxford. I talk to her everyday on the phone. My mother is an integral part of my life."

    Sagarika Ghose
    CNN IBN deputy editor

     

    "I always feel that the journey I am enjoying in life has been entirely because of her sacrifices, prayers and belief in God. God is rewarding her by keeping us healthy and happy. While a doctor does cut the umbilical cord between mother and child, in real life, the cord only gets stronger and stronger as we grow. My mom and I share the same bond and she is the heart of my body. We share a great bond like friends. We care, we respect, we love, we fight, we pray, we share."

    Ajit Varghese
    Maxus South Asia MD

     

    "Every day I spend with my mother is special. I would not say I cherish Mother‘s Day specially, because for me, I love my mother each and every day and she is an integral part of my life. One of the most vivid memories from childhood with Mum is when she threw my entire collection of marbles out the window, quite literally. I used to love playing with marbles as a kid and I had a huge collection. I would start playing, and in the process create a racket with the marbles, in the morning. One day my Mum lost it. That was when she entered my room and just threw the entire bag away!"

    Pratap Bose
    DDB Mudra Group COO

     

    "A mother is often the first example of unconditional love that a child experiences. For many mighty girls, their relationship with their mothers is a very special one, and my mom is a role model for me. She has been extremely influential and supportive throughout. I share a wonderful relationship with her… more like a friend than a daughter. I always call her ‘from Shakespeare to samosas‘, as she has done her master’s in English literature and has also sold samosas. She is a fantastic lady and I owe my success to her. My mother is a diligent and determined woman who has guided me with the right direction. More importantly, she has taught me to appreciate this life as a precious gift."

    Monica Tata
    HBO India MD

     

    "Ever since my childhood, I have been greatly influenced by my mother. Right from childhood, my mother used to create plays at home and this is how I developed a love for this field. She holds a very strong and influential position in my life. She has motivated me a lot to act in plays in schools and colleges and that has helped me in building my career today to this success. There are many special moments and memories I have spent with her and it is very difficult to pin-point any one. My mother actually is an ordinary woman but in her tiny appearance lies an extraordinary fortitude, perseverance, an altruistic soul and a very kind heart."

    Anooj Kapoor
    Sab EVP and business head

     

    "When I was growing up in Uttar Pradesh in the seventies and eighties we didn‘t know of a thing called Mothers Day, but we practised it by giving her the day off on her birthday. My dad , my sister and I would pamper her and the day would end with us taking her out for a meal. Incidentally, my mother‘s birthday is on teacher‘s day, so it was very poignant. The current tradition of Mothers Day is a great one as it brings our dear moms in the spotlight and they deserve this extra day of being serenaded. May be we should have more mothers‘ days in a year. Happy Mother‘s Day Amma !"

    Atul Pande
    Zeel Sports Business CEO

     

    "Whatever I am now, I owe it all to her. She used to narrate a lot of stories to me in my childhood and that has helped me become a good ‘storyteller‘. When she would narrate stories to me, the very next day I used to narrate them to my school mates and soon I became a popular ‘storyteller’. Since the past five years I have the same caller tune dedicated to my parents. She has always guided me to the right path in every step of my life. She has taught me discipline, manners, and the sense of duty towards others in the family and in society."

    JD Majethia
    Hats Off Productions owner & actor/director

     

    "At 93, she is a fountain of Wisdom, wit and positive energy… My biggest inspiration #unconditionalLove #Mother" (on his facebook profile)

    Raj Nayak
    Colors CEO

  • Nestle consolidates digital biz with Maxus Digital

    MUMBAI: Nestle India has consolidated its digital and social media Duties with GroupM’s Maxus Digital.

    The FMCG major has been successfully executing various digital initiatives on brand websites, social media and mobile across brands. Nescafe, Maggi, Milkmaid amongst others are some of the largest Facebook Communities in their respective businesses. These digital assets of Nestle India that were being managed by multiple agencies have now been consolidated under Maxus digital.

    Maxus Digital will work closely with the company and also help manage the Digital Acceleration and Services Hub ‘DASH’. Maxus has dedicated a team for Nestle India with skills in social media platforms, measurements and creative and some of these team members will be operating from DASH in the Nestle Head Office.

    Maxus South Asia head of digital Unny Radhakrishnan said, “We are very proud to be a part of Nestle’s digital journey. In a digitally connected world, reaching and engaging consumers requires expertise and understanding in diverse areas of Creative, content, technology, media and the ability to measure. DASH that has been launched by Nestle is the first of its Kind in India and we are excited about enhancing their capabilities with our own digital expertise.”

    Maxus South Asia MD Ajit Varghese said” We are excited to partner Nestle India and at being able to set up the first of its kind digital team for them. Nestle has already developed some good digital assets and we will work closely with the Nestle team to mesh them with mainstream marketing. “

    Maxus Digital is the digital arm of Maxus and offers services in the areas of digital consulting, media, creative, technology and social. Maxus Digital’s clients include Nokia, Google, Vodafone, Titan, Hero Motocorp, Redbull, Fiat and Tata Motors.

  • Shailja Vohra joins Maxus as ESP head

    Shailja Vohra joins Maxus as ESP head

    MUMBAI: Maxus, a GroupM media agency, has announced the appointment of Shailja Vohra as ESP head.  She will be based out of Delhi office and will report to Maxus and Motivator South Asia MD Ajit Varghese.

    Vohra earlier served as head of programming and operations for Fox Traveller and acquisitions for NGC. Before that, she had a long stint at Discovery in programming.

    Maxus MD Ajit Varghese said, “At Maxus, we have always believed in incubating specialised people in areas of content, activation and digital apart from integrated planners leading business teams. With Shailja‘s programming background and her passion for the space, we believe it can add a fresh perspective of looking at content and also look at ways of driving content strategy for brands across platforms, formats than just AFPs”.

    Vohra said, “It‘s a privilege to be part of Maxus ESP team. I am joining them at an interesting juncture both when Content is taking a Central role in Communication Planning and Brands are looking at newer formats to engage with consumer. I would love to take the practice to the next level along with GroupM collaboration and capabilities.”