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Tag: dentsu international

  • Michael Komasinski appointed as global CEO, Merkle

    Michael Komasinski appointed as global CEO, Merkle

    Mumbai: dentsu International has announced that Michael Komasinski is to be promoted to the role of global chief executive officer of Merkle, and a member of the dentsu international executive team. He replaces Craig Dempster who has been a member of the Merkle executive leadership team for nearly 15 years and joined dentsu during Merkle’s acquisition in 2016. Craig will retire from the business at the end of the year.

    Komasinski will commence his role as global CEO Merkle on 1 January and will join the dentsu International executive team, reporting to Wendy Clark. The new president, Merkle Americas will be announced in due course, the agency stated. 

    “Michael’s track record speaks for itself. He inspires and leads teams in developing impactful, data-driven, and tech-enabled customer experiences while building lasting and values-based relationships with clients,” said dentsu International global CEO Wendy Clark. “He shares our collective ambition to become the most integrated agency network, delivering integrated solutions to drive growth for our clients across creative, media, and CXM. I know Michael is ready to progress this agenda at the helm of Merkle and will be a key leader for dentsu as we further accelerate our growth and momentum.”

    “Craig has been instrumental in growing the Merkle business over the past 15 years. He leaves the brand in great shape with a strong client portfolio, a solid leadership team and a business that is much more integrated into dentsu. It has been a privilege to work with Craig as part of my executive team,” Clark added.

    As global CEO, Dempster has played an integral role in driving Merkle’s culture, growth and profitability, and in building Merkle’s relationships with flagship brands such as AT&T, GEICO, Citizens, and AARP. He has also been a key leader on the dentsu international executive team. “I am immensely proud of what we as a brand have achieved over these past 15 years. Merkle’s growth and offering under dentsu is world class. Putting data at the heart of everything we do at dentsu is transforming our offer and ultimately providing our clients with a seamless and integrated experience to deliver outstanding growth. I celebrate and thank our people in helping to build one of the most innovative businesses in the world,” Dempster said.

    Komasinski is a natural successor to the role and brings a wealth of experience having led Merkle across two of dentsu’s three regions, the agency said. Joining Merkle seven years ago as chief operating officer of Agency Services, he went on to become president of Merkle’s Europe, Middle East, and Africa region (EMEA), leading a business of over $400 million in net revenue. During his four years within the EMEA business, it experienced five times growth.

    “Bringing together our combined strengths with dentsu makes us truly market-leading, demonstrating to our clients the breadth of capability we offer to deliver integrated marketing solutions and business outcomes,” stated Komasinski. “Talent is the lifeblood of brands like Merkle and it is a key focus in the pandemic era as the labor market tightens and we pivot to hybrid ways of working. As in the past, we are focused on making Merkle and dentsu the employer of choice where the best talent in the industry wants to come develop and thrive.”  

    He currently serves as president of Merkle/CXM, Americas, and leader of the dentsu Customer Experience Management (CXM) Service Line in the Americas, overseeing all aspects of Merkle’s Americas regional operation.

    Komasinski’s appointment comes at a pivotal time for dentsu as the business moves closer to its ambition of becoming the most integrated agency network in the world, that’s data-driven, tech-enabled and ideas-led. Powered by Merkle, dentsu is focused on delivering growth for clients through its integrated human-centric solutions, said the agency in a statement.

    Merkle is one of dentsu’s six leadership brands, and was a game-changing acquisition, that’s proved a worthy investment as it remains the market leader in people-based customer experience and a strong growth engine for dentsu. Earlier this year, the brand’s industry leadership was further reinforced with the acquisition of LiveArea, bolstering Merkle’s global experience and commerce capabilities, and further positioning the business as a go-to experience partner for businesses around the world.

  • dentsu International names Narayan Devanathan as chief client officer for India

    dentsu International names Narayan Devanathan as chief client officer for India

    Mumbai: dentsu international has announced the creation of a new market leadership role of chief client officer (CCO) and elevated Narayan Devanathan to this position for India. Most recently, Devanathan was dentsu Solutions CEO, dentsu India president of strategy & integration, and dentsu Creative APAC lead for strategy & consulting.

    The development is seen as a key part of the dentsu India 2.0 transformation agenda. While a CEO for dentsu India is being recruited, Devanathan will report into global CEO media and global clients and interim co-CEO for India Peter Huijboom.

    “India is a key part of the global dentsu story, and Narayan, in turn, is a key member of the India leadership team,” said Hujiboom. “As we embark on the next leg of the dentsu India 2.0 journey, he will be focusing his energy, expertise and experience in helping bring together the capabilities of 3200+ dentsu talents seamlessly to make dentsu our clients’ partner of choice. With this appointment as CCO for India, Narayan will be moving away from his other roles in India and APAC with immediate effect.”

    Devanathan will be responsible for driving a renewed focus on client-centric solutions and will partner Amit Wadhwa (Creative Service Line CEO), Divya Karani (Media Service Line CEO) and Anubhav Sonthalia (CXM Service Line CEO) to deliver the best of dentsu’s solutions across the spectrum of business challenges that clients face in an ever-changing world while making our business easier to navigate for our clients.

    “Through relentless customer-centricity, outcome-driving solutions and next practice consulting, our aim for dentsu India 2.0 is not just to transform ourselves but to transform our clients’ business – sustainably, for good,” stated Devanathan. “To this end, we will deploy the power of creativity, a consummate understanding of people and data, and keep our eye on the only prize that matters: meaningful progress for our clients, their customers, and society.”

  • Former dentsu exec Gautam Mehra joins ProfitWheel as co-founder

    Former dentsu exec Gautam Mehra joins ProfitWheel as co-founder

    Mumbai: Gautam Mehra, dentsu International’s former chief data and product officer – APAC, has announced that he will be joining the recently announced SaaS platform ProfitWheel as co-founder along with Vivek Bhargava and Aman Khanna.

    ProfitWheel is a product company focused on creating a customer data-led marketing intelligence platform for the new direct-to-consumer world.

    “Gautam and I have worked together for over a decade, and I am delighted to have him on board as a co-founder,” said Vivek Bhargava. “Under his leadership, we will have an increased focus on driving tech innovations and building new products that will enable true intelligence in the mar-tech ecosystem. His past experience of solving a problem local to each market and driving a global product-led solution is precisely what we intend to deliver at ProfitWheel.”

    Mehra had joined dentsu Group in 2014 as business head – social media division at iProspect Communicate 2. In his last role at dentsu International (previously dentsu Aegis Network), he spearheaded the programmatic and data segment for the group in the region. He also built DMC (dentsu Marketing Cloud), the proprietary data insights to activation stack for dentsu.

    “I am driven by building products that solve large business challenges, and this feels like the right time to build something new, as ad tech reinvents itself,” Mehra said on his new role. “With ProfitWheel, we are focused on solving the biggest problems for D2C brands on effective customer acquisition, enhanced profitability, marketplace expansion, and growth in the most privacy-compliant manner.”

  • Haresh Nayak moves on from dentsu International

    Haresh Nayak moves on from dentsu International

    Mumbai: Posterscope India MD and Posterscope president APAC Haresh Nayak has quit dentsu International. Along with Nayak, dentsu India SVP & Indeed CSR head Sahil Arora has also announced his departure from the agency. The news of the latest exits from dentsu was confirmed by the network. 

    It further issued clarity on the OOH businesses being aligned into Amplifi, dentsu’s supply-side management platform, under the leadership of Media India, CEO, Divya Karani, following Nayak’s departure.

    In a statement to IndianTelevision.com, the company said, “To stay ahead of the growth opportunities and potential we see for our clients and our teams we are accelerating into dentsu India 2.0. This is crucial to realising our global ambition of becoming the most integrated network in the world, simplifying and transforming our business to deliver greater agility, speed to market, and increased value to our clients.”

    Dentsu further added, “As part of this transformation, our OOH businesses will be aligned into Amplifi, our supply-side management platform, under the leadership of Divya Karani, CEO, Media India following the departure of Haresh Nayak. Out of Home advertising is an incredibly important part of the Media environment for dentsu and our clients, and we will continue to grow our market-leading expertise and results in outdoor advertising with a strong and continued focus on innovation, locally relevant solutions, and integration to deliver competitive advantage to our clients.”

    The two resignations are the latest in a slew of top-level exits at the network that have shocked the advertising fraternity. 

    Several senior-level executives have moved out of the network in the last few days, including Isobar COO Gopa Menon, iProspect CEO Rubeena Singh, DAN Performance Group CEO Vivek Bhargava, Isobar’s  South Asia Group MD Shams Jasani, DAN Programmatic chief data and product officer, APAC, and CEO Gautam Mehra, Taproot Dentsu CCO Agnello Dias, dentsu India CEO, formerly CFO Anand Bhadkamkar, and Taproot Dentsu co-founder and CCO Santosh Padhi.

    There have also been a couple of high-profile hires at the network simultaneously. Recently Mindshare’s Vinod Thadani joined as dentsu Media Group chief digital growth officer, and iProspect CEO. Ajay Gahlaut was also onboarded as dentsu Creative India group CCO last week.

    Nayak had recently completed thirteen years at the network, having joined Posterscope India in 2008 as managing director. He was elevated to the position of Posterscope’s APAC president last year. Prior to joining Posterscope, Nayak was business director and national buying head at Lintas India (IPG India) for six years.

  • Dentsu International appoints Rohit Suri as chief HR officer for South Asia

    Dentsu International appoints Rohit Suri as chief HR officer for South Asia

    Mumbai: Dentsu International has announced the appointment of Rohit Suri to the role of chief HR officer (CHRO), South Asia, effective 15 September 2021. The appointment is key to the dentsu India 2.0 transformation agenda which is designed to unlock higher levels of business performance, innovation, and solution-led strategies for its people and clients, said the agency on Monday.

    Based in Mumbai, Suri will build a high-performance team in India and Sri Lanka, establishing new skills and talent initiatives while shaping a people-oriented, value-led culture. His core focus will be to drive the India 2.0 transformation journey. According to the company, he will accentuate the leadership agenda and talent pipeline, pivotal in futureproofing the long-term competitiveness of the business.

    Suri will report to dentsu Asia Pacific (APAC) CEO and dentsu India, chairman Ashish Bhasin and dentsu APAC, regional HR director, Kinch Ong.

    He carries over 23 years of progressive experience in fast-paced Consumer Internet, Technology, and media companies, and has worked across South Asia, APAC, and Europe. Most recently, he was chief talent officer (CTO) at GroupM South Asia, leading human resources and talent operations in the region.

    Meanwhile, HR Operations Transformation head, South Asia, Sunil Seth will continue to support the business with a tighter focus on HR Operations transformation and the Sri Lanka market, reporting to Rohit, said dentsu in a media statement.

    dentsu APAC CEO and dentsu India chairman Ashish Bhasin said, “This is the beginning of our transformation journey and the dentsu India 2.0 path to success. With Rohit on board, he will be a leading force in our journey in building a new team for South Asia. He will ensure we have a compelling talent acquisition strategy for future talent. This is crucial as the region accelerates in growth and continues on the journey to realising our global ambition of becoming the most integrated network in the world, making us more agile and simpler for our clients to access our world-class capabilities and talents.”

    On his new role Suri said, “This is an exciting time and opportunity to join dentsu and be part of a pioneering team of next-generation leaders. With the pandemic, it is important, now more than ever, that we create real human connections and build a powerful culture. How can we bring incremental value by fostering a team spirit of excellence and togetherness? This is what I plan to achieve, together with my team, in the coming months and I cannot wait to get started.”

    dentsu Asia Pacific regional HR Director, Kinch Ong, said, “Rohit is a pivotal hire for our team, a well-known name in the industry with a solid track record that we are confident will extend to our dentsu HR function through the impact from his integral role in India’s transformation 2.0.”

  • dentsu India CEO Anand Bhadkamkar moves on

    dentsu India CEO Anand Bhadkamkar moves on

    Mumbai: Anand Bhadkamkar has stepped down as chief executive officer of dentsu International India. He was associated with the agency network for 14 years and served as CEO from September 2019.

    Dentsu International APAC, CEO and chairman India, Ashish Bhasin and dentsu media and global clients, global CEO, Peter Hujiboom will step in to assume the day-to-day leadership of dentsu India in the interim. The company has yet to find a successor for Bhadkamkar.

    “In the last year, and despite the pandemic, we have started to optimise our portfolio of brands into six global leadership brands, making us more agile and simpler for our clients to access our world-class capabilities and talents. To accelerate this transformation, Ashish Bhasin, CEO, APAC and chairman India, and Peter Huijboom, global CEO, media and global clients will assume interim, day-to-day leadership of dentsu India while the business completes its search for a successor to Anand Bhadkamkar, who leaves dentsu on August 31,” said the agency in a statement on Tuesday.

    “With this new structure, we are well-positioned to unlock higher levels of business performance, innovation, and solution-led strategies for our people and for our clients. Our ambitions and goals are interconnected, and this is the beginning of dentsu India 2.0’s new and transformed path to success,” it added.

    Bhadkamkar joined Dentsu Aegis Network as chief financial officer for India in 2008 and was given additional charge as chief operating officer in April 2019. During his 25-year career, he has been associated with Lowe Lintas and Ernst and Young.

    Bhadkamkar is a chartered accountant who completed his bachelor’s in commerce from Narsee Monjee College of Commerce and Economics.

  • Vinod Thadani joins Dentsu International as DGO, media – India & CEO, iProspect India

    Vinod Thadani joins Dentsu International as DGO, media – India & CEO, iProspect India

    Mumbai: Dentsu International on Friday announced the appointment of Vinod Thadani as chief digital growth officer (DGO) for India. Thadani will also be taking on the additional role of chief executive officer (CEO), iProspect India. He will report to Media South Asia, CEO, Divya Karani.

    Thadani comes with over two decades of experience in media and advertising. Prior to Dentsu, he was associated with Mindshare as chief digital officer for the South Asia region. Previously, Thadani was the CEO of Madhouse India, a joint venture between WPP and Madhouse China, and played a crucial role in setting up India’s largest mobile advertising and marketing company.

    Speaking about the new development, Karani said, “Vinod is a strategic addition to our future-forward business design. His values and commitment to innovation resonate with all that dentsu stands for. I am fully confident his exceptional and in-depth mastery of digital will help our clients’ business scale new frontiers.”  

    Commenting on his new assignment, Vinod Thadani said, “I am excited to become an integral part of this network and look forward to the journey ahead. My contribution in dual capacities will be an opportunity to offer excellence and best-in-class services to all our clients specially in the space of digital performance, data-driven marketing, e-commerce, marketing effectiveness & creative. There is scale, specialisation & integration at the core of our offerings & through this journey, my goal is to pursue growth for our clients and the network.”

  • Dentsu International appoints Fred Levron as global chief creative officer

    Dentsu International appoints Fred Levron as global chief creative officer

    New Delhi: Dentsu International on Tuesday named Fred Levron as the company’s global chief creative officer.  In his new role, Levron will lead the network’s holistic creative agenda and its portfolio of creative agencies worldwide. He will join the company on 1 November.

    Levron will build on dentsu international’s current capabilities and storied Japanese creative roots and will be responsible for the network’s creative product and accelerating creativity across the entirety of dentsu international’s Creative, Media and CXM agency brands, as it transforms to become the most integrated network in the world, said the company in a statement.

    Levron joins dentsu from FCB where he served as worldwide creative partner. Prior to FCB, he was part of the leadership team at CAA Marketing, the four-time Emmy winner entertainment agency based in Los Angeles. He also held several positions over his ten-year tenure at Ogilvy Paris where he helped transform the agency into a global creative powerhouse. 

    dentsu international, global CEO, Wendy Clark said, “Fred has one of the most lauded portfolios and creative reputations in the business. His appointment accelerates and emphasizes the importance of creativity as the hallmark of everything we do. I’m counting down the days until he joins.” 

    Levron was recently recognised as the top chief creative officer globally by The Drum publication global ranking in 2020 and The One Club global ranking for two consecutive years in 2020 and 2021. He has won close to 200 Cannes Lions including 13 Grand Prix and 46 Gold, three Black Pencils at D&AD, and more than 2000 international awards.

    “My entire career has been driven by the ambition to transform the agencies and network I was part of and build brands and businesses through the power of modern creativity. Today, I’m so excited to start this new transformation journey as I’m joining Wendy and dentsu’s 45,000+ employees. We have the opportunity to build a unique creative company that brings creativity, tech, data, media, entertainment, and commerce together to become the most attractive place for talents out there and the most relevant partner for the biggest brands,” said Levron.

  • Dentsu Group appoints Jean Lin as new Executive Officer

    Dentsu Group appoints Jean Lin as new Executive Officer

    New Delhi: Dentsu Group announced on Wednesday that its board of directors has decided to appoint Jean Lin as new executive officer of the company, effective on August 1. Lin will also continue in her current role as global CEO of Creative Services Line of dentsu International Ltd.

    Lin will advise and guide the development of dentsu Sustainable Business Solutions (dSBS) which will be at the core of the sustainable client solutions provided across dentsu Japan network and dentsu International. “This distinctive proposition will accelerate client growth by bringing together dentsu’s deep understanding of consumers and commitments to society, with creativity and technology, to create an ecosystem of co-creation with clients and partners to drive ‘growth from good’, ” the company said in a statement.

    Dentsu Group president and CEO, Toshihiro Yamamoto said, “At dentsu we believe in helping to realise a better society by contributing to the good progress of our clients and their consumers, our partners and our people. Dentsu Sustainable Business Solutions is core to delivering on our social commitments and business strategy, and I am delighted Jean’s entrepreneurial spirit, experience in creativity and digital transformation, industry leadership and personal commitment to sustainability will help guide its development.”

    Lin founded wwwins Consulting, a digital agency in 1999, which was acquired by Aegis Media in 2004. Subsequently, she became the first head of Isobar’s Greater China office. In 2014, she was elevated to Isobar global CEO, and appointed as Isobar global chief executive chairman in March, 2020. In 2016, she was also made a member of the Global Executive Team of Dentsu Aegis Network (now dentsu International), Isobar’s parent company. Lin was appointed in her current role as the global chief executive officer, Creative, dentsu International in November, 2019.