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Tag: Saurabh Varma

  • Leo Burnett elevates Dheeraj Sinha, Rajdeepak Das as MDs

    Leo Burnett elevates Dheeraj Sinha, Rajdeepak Das as MDs

    MUMBAI: Advertising agency Leo Burnett India has announced two key elevations in its senior leadership. Dheeraj Sinha and Rajdeepak Das have been named as managing directors.

    Both currently serve as the chief strategy officer and chief creative officer at Leo Burnett South Asia, respectively. The duo will continue to be based out of Mumbai and will report into Publicis Communications India CEO Saurabh Varma. Their new roles are in addition to their current responsibilities.

    In his new mandate, Sinha will be responsible for the agency’s revenue growth, in addition to heading its strategic and planning output. Das’ new role will see him leverage Leo Burnett’s humankind philosophy in order to elevate Burnett’s creative product.

    Speaking about his promotion, Sinha says, “I am looking forward to leading Leo Burnett at possibly the best time that the agency has ever had. Our success at Cannes Lions last year — being the only agency to win for innovation and effectiveness — is a good framing of our agency ambition. As a chief strategy officer, in various jobs across Asia, I have been deeply involved in the business aspect of the agency over the last decade. I am now looking forward to running the business hands-on. I am fortunate to have Raj’s partnership and Saurabh’s backing in my new role.”

    Das adds to this, “I am incredibly proud of where Leo Burnett’s creative output stands today. The last three years have been a great journey. We have turned our agency into one of the youngest and most dynamic creative companies in the region. Having said that, I believe we are only as good as our last piece of creative work. There is so much more to take on and achieve and I can’t think of a better partner than Dheeraj to take on my new responsibilities with.”

    Speaking about the development, Varma says, “Four years back we started on an incredible journey as a team. We challenged every rule book, every status quo. We wanted to create ‘Wave Three’ where engagement, experience and utility would be celebrated as much as a piece of content. We wanted to create a maker culture. In this period, Indigo Consulting became a digital powerhouse. We launched Arc Worldwide and made it one of the leading experiential agencies, and built Prodigious into one of the finest production houses in India. We created epic work and had great fun doing it.”

    He further adds, “Leo Burnett now needs a new chapter. The ‘power of one’ has given Leo Burnett access to the best specialist operations in the country. Backed by the expertise of Indigo, Arc, Prodigious MSLGroup and Publicis.Sapient, the agency is now in the best position to partner our clients’ businesses. Raj and Dheeraj have, together, transformed Leo Burnett India into the formidable force it is today. They have always led from the front and it is the right time to acknowledge the role they already play. Our collective ambition remains the same; to be the best in the world, bar none.”

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  • Publicis Comm merges experiential & brand activation arms

    Publicis Comm merges experiential & brand activation arms

    MUMBAI: Publicis Communications has announced the merger of its in-house technology-enabled experiential arm, Solutions, with its brand activation and experiential shopper agency, Arc Worldwide, effective immediately. The development fits perfectly with Arc Worldwide’s strategic expansion plans to scale up its geographical footprint in India.

    Publicis Communications India and Leo Burnett South Asia CEO Saurabh Varma says, “By merging the two entities, Arc can leverage their combined expertise in ways that are unprecedented for the industry. The merger of Solutions with Arc will create even more momentum for Arc’s trajectory in India. Arc has deep capabilities across the entire experience landscape. With Solutions, we will create meaningful value exchange straddling the entire shopping experience for greater impact on our clients’ businesses. The merger fits perfectly with our ‘Power of One’ strategy.”

    The newly merged entity will be called Arc Worldwide and will be headed by Vandana Verma, executive vice president and India head at Arc. Solutions’ entire team and its roster of clients will now come under the Arc umbrella.

    Verma adds, “Arc is focused on creating meaningful connected experiences. In India, Arc is a key platform within Publicis Communications. Solutions will add immense value to Arc through its expertise across technology-enabled solutions, paperless retail audits, merchandising and real time consumer feedback, among others. The merger will now help us lead experiential planning, data-driven shopper insights, and mobile-tracking and analytics-led initiatives designed to help our clients reach empowered consumers.”

    Solutions COO Virender Sharma mentions, “The merger with Arc means unparalleled access to all clients in the Publicis Communications portfolio. I look forward to seamlessly integrating ideas and solutions that will grow our clients’ businesses. We are happy to see the coming together of Arc Worldwide and Solutions at our new Big Apple office in Gurugram.”

    Arc Worldwide is globally one of the top three agencies in the experiential and shopper marketing gamut. It is present in 40 countries serving over 400 brands. The agency says its ‘Irresistible Commerce’ philosophy moves people to like, share, participate, and ultimately make a purchase. Arc’s key clients in India include Amazon, P&G, Huawei, Heineken, Bajaj and Häagen-Dasz. Solutions is an innovative and ideas-led digital offering serving some of India’s leading companies including HP, ITC, Fitbit, CP Plus, Usha and Sandisk, among several others.

  • Prashanth Challapalli joins Leo Burnett

    Prashanth Challapalli joins Leo Burnett

    MUMBAI: Leo Burnett announced Prashanth Challapalli as the chief integration officer for South Asia.

    In his new mandate, Challapalli will work with leaders across Publicis Communications to drive integration, and will report to Publicis Communications India CEO Saurabh Varma. His last stint was with iContract, where he was the executive vice president and digital head.

    At Leo Burnett, his key mandate predominantly includes operationalizing and scaling up Leo Burnett’s unique methodology, PLAY, which puts context at the heart of creating content. Prashanth will also be a key bridge between Publicis Communications and Publicis.Sapient, responsible for bringing the best of Publicis.Sapient to all clients.

    Varma said, “Prashanth will be key as we put digital at the core of our offering and increasingly create cutting edge ideas and stories which emanate from the product itself.”

    Added Prashanth, “I have always been a big believer in one brand, one consumer and one communication approach and most of the leaders at Publicis Communications are either ex-colleagues or friends for a long time.”

    With over 19 years of experience, Prashanth has worked with agencies like Ogilvy, Lowe, Dentsu, Publicis Ambience and Rediffusion Y&R, and has also successfully built and lead Jack in the Box Worldwide and iContract in the digital space. He has won multiple national and international awards like EFFIES, Spikes, and AME, among others, for his work across brands and campaigns like Puma, Pepsi, Slice, Louis Philippe, Durex and Kolaveri Di.

  • Prashanth Challapalli joins Leo Burnett

    Prashanth Challapalli joins Leo Burnett

    MUMBAI: Leo Burnett announced Prashanth Challapalli as the chief integration officer for South Asia.

    In his new mandate, Challapalli will work with leaders across Publicis Communications to drive integration, and will report to Publicis Communications India CEO Saurabh Varma. His last stint was with iContract, where he was the executive vice president and digital head.

    At Leo Burnett, his key mandate predominantly includes operationalizing and scaling up Leo Burnett’s unique methodology, PLAY, which puts context at the heart of creating content. Prashanth will also be a key bridge between Publicis Communications and Publicis.Sapient, responsible for bringing the best of Publicis.Sapient to all clients.

    Varma said, “Prashanth will be key as we put digital at the core of our offering and increasingly create cutting edge ideas and stories which emanate from the product itself.”

    Added Prashanth, “I have always been a big believer in one brand, one consumer and one communication approach and most of the leaders at Publicis Communications are either ex-colleagues or friends for a long time.”

    With over 19 years of experience, Prashanth has worked with agencies like Ogilvy, Lowe, Dentsu, Publicis Ambience and Rediffusion Y&R, and has also successfully built and lead Jack in the Box Worldwide and iContract in the digital space. He has won multiple national and international awards like EFFIES, Spikes, and AME, among others, for his work across brands and campaigns like Puma, Pepsi, Slice, Louis Philippe, Durex and Kolaveri Di.

  • Dheeraj Sinha is Leo Burnett South Asia chief strategy officer

    Dheeraj Sinha is Leo Burnett South Asia chief strategy officer

    MUMBAI: Leo Burnett announced the appointment of Dheeraj Sinha as chief strategy officer. Sinha will be based out of the agency’s Mumbai office and will be responsible for planning across South Asia.

    Confirming the development, South Asia chief executive officer Saurabh Varma  said, “We are really excited that Dheeraj is joining us at this critical juncture in our evolution as an agency. We have incredible momentum as a team and both Raj and I were in the hunt for a partner. We wanted someone who can join us in our crusade to change the communication narrative in India. With Dheeraj, we hope to get radical convergence around our purpose and radical divergence around how to get there.” 

    On his joining, Sinha commented, “There’s great energy around Leo Burnett in India, and I am looking forward to be a part of it and adding to the momentum. In my conversations with Saurabh and Raj, what stands out is their commitment to the product and culture, leading to growth, rather than the other way round. There’s also a serious ambition to create work that’s in line with how the world has changed. They have evidence of having done such work in the recent past. I see this as an opportunity to collaborate and build something that we can all be proud of.”
    In a career spanning 17 years, Dheeraj has worked with McCann Erickson, Euro RSCG, Bates and Grey. In his last role, he led the strategic planning function for Grey in India, South & South East Asia.

    Sinha has worked on brands and businesses across markets such as Malaysia, Singapore, Indonesia, Vietnam and Bangladesh. He has spent time across categories on brands like Sensodyne, Indian Army, Britannia, 3M, ITC Juices, Maybank, Telekom Malaysia, Grameenphone, Reliance Mobile, Colgate, MasterCard, LG, DBS Bank, Tata AIA, TVS, Virgin Mobile, Max Bupa, Fiat, Reckitt Benckiser, Emirates, Dabur, Marico and CavinKare. 

    Dheeraj is the author of two books on the Indian consumer market:  “India Reloaded – Inside the Resurgent Indian Consumer Market” and “Consumer India – Inside the Indian Mind and Wallet”.

  • Dheeraj Sinha is Leo Burnett South Asia chief strategy officer

    Dheeraj Sinha is Leo Burnett South Asia chief strategy officer

    MUMBAI: Leo Burnett announced the appointment of Dheeraj Sinha as chief strategy officer. Sinha will be based out of the agency’s Mumbai office and will be responsible for planning across South Asia.

    Confirming the development, South Asia chief executive officer Saurabh Varma  said, “We are really excited that Dheeraj is joining us at this critical juncture in our evolution as an agency. We have incredible momentum as a team and both Raj and I were in the hunt for a partner. We wanted someone who can join us in our crusade to change the communication narrative in India. With Dheeraj, we hope to get radical convergence around our purpose and radical divergence around how to get there.” 

    On his joining, Sinha commented, “There’s great energy around Leo Burnett in India, and I am looking forward to be a part of it and adding to the momentum. In my conversations with Saurabh and Raj, what stands out is their commitment to the product and culture, leading to growth, rather than the other way round. There’s also a serious ambition to create work that’s in line with how the world has changed. They have evidence of having done such work in the recent past. I see this as an opportunity to collaborate and build something that we can all be proud of.”
    In a career spanning 17 years, Dheeraj has worked with McCann Erickson, Euro RSCG, Bates and Grey. In his last role, he led the strategic planning function for Grey in India, South & South East Asia.

    Sinha has worked on brands and businesses across markets such as Malaysia, Singapore, Indonesia, Vietnam and Bangladesh. He has spent time across categories on brands like Sensodyne, Indian Army, Britannia, 3M, ITC Juices, Maybank, Telekom Malaysia, Grameenphone, Reliance Mobile, Colgate, MasterCard, LG, DBS Bank, Tata AIA, TVS, Virgin Mobile, Max Bupa, Fiat, Reckitt Benckiser, Emirates, Dabur, Marico and CavinKare. 

    Dheeraj is the author of two books on the Indian consumer market:  “India Reloaded – Inside the Resurgent Indian Consumer Market” and “Consumer India – Inside the Indian Mind and Wallet”.

  • Leo Burnett crafts new philosophy for HP Lubricants

    Leo Burnett crafts new philosophy for HP Lubricants

    MUMBAI  Zindagi Chale Smooth, a modern narrative designed by Leo Burnett India for HP Lubricants, highlights the brand’s sheer strength and the role it plays through its superior technology in smoothening people’s lives.

    The company is able to achieve this through presence across various segments like automotive, defence, farming, mining, shipping industries, railways and more.

    Created by Leo Burnett, the new positioning Zindagi Chale Smooth marks a shift in the brand’s marketing focus from being perceived as an engine oil company to a humane brand; one that builds innovative products and technologies for today’s consumer.

    Zindagi Chale Smooth is a human expression of the brand’s core offering. An animation film is being used to launch the thought ‘A to Z, Aapke Kaam Aate Hum’, which breaks category codes and highlights the company’s diversified and large scale operations through which it touches the lives of millions, making HP Lubricants a super brand.

    Leo Burnett South Asia CEO Saurabh Varma said, “HP Lubricants had not undergone a brand refresh for a very long time. Given the current market scenario, we wanted our joint efforts to build a modern narrative that gives the end consumer an accurate idea about HP Lubricants. A company that has strong presence across sectors and not just engine oil.

    A to Z Aapke Kaam Aatey Hai helps build higher emotional affinity and rightly captures what the brand stands for, which is to power India. And this is not just a communication change, but a part of a larger exercise being undertaken by us to align this purpose right down to packaging design.”

    Leo Burnett CCO RajDeepak Das  added, “Most people do not know the incredible products HP Lubricants has and the role the brand plays in our everyday life. We wanted to do that in a simple and human way.”

    Zindagi Chale Smooth is an integrated effort spanning across digital, print, retail, cinema, outdoor and TV. While the TVC has been launched, print, retail, cinema and digital campaigns are expected to go live post 8th March 2016.

  • Leo Burnett crafts new philosophy for HP Lubricants

    Leo Burnett crafts new philosophy for HP Lubricants

    MUMBAI  Zindagi Chale Smooth, a modern narrative designed by Leo Burnett India for HP Lubricants, highlights the brand’s sheer strength and the role it plays through its superior technology in smoothening people’s lives.

    The company is able to achieve this through presence across various segments like automotive, defence, farming, mining, shipping industries, railways and more.

    Created by Leo Burnett, the new positioning Zindagi Chale Smooth marks a shift in the brand’s marketing focus from being perceived as an engine oil company to a humane brand; one that builds innovative products and technologies for today’s consumer.

    Zindagi Chale Smooth is a human expression of the brand’s core offering. An animation film is being used to launch the thought ‘A to Z, Aapke Kaam Aate Hum’, which breaks category codes and highlights the company’s diversified and large scale operations through which it touches the lives of millions, making HP Lubricants a super brand.

    Leo Burnett South Asia CEO Saurabh Varma said, “HP Lubricants had not undergone a brand refresh for a very long time. Given the current market scenario, we wanted our joint efforts to build a modern narrative that gives the end consumer an accurate idea about HP Lubricants. A company that has strong presence across sectors and not just engine oil.

    A to Z Aapke Kaam Aatey Hai helps build higher emotional affinity and rightly captures what the brand stands for, which is to power India. And this is not just a communication change, but a part of a larger exercise being undertaken by us to align this purpose right down to packaging design.”

    Leo Burnett CCO RajDeepak Das  added, “Most people do not know the incredible products HP Lubricants has and the role the brand plays in our everyday life. We wanted to do that in a simple and human way.”

    Zindagi Chale Smooth is an integrated effort spanning across digital, print, retail, cinema, outdoor and TV. While the TVC has been launched, print, retail, cinema and digital campaigns are expected to go live post 8th March 2016.