Move and win roundup: Week of September 16, 2024

L&K Saatchi & Saatchi, part of Publicis Groupe India, has appointed Roshni Kavina as national creative director. Based out of the agency’s Mumbai office, Kavina will report to Kartik Smetacek and Rohit Malkani, the agency’s chief creative directors. Kavina joined L&K Saatchi & Saatchi from Byju’s International, where she was the brand strategy and creative head for North America and Canada. She served as executive creative director at Publicis Ambience from 2015 to 2021. She has also earlier been with Publicis Groupe at Saatchi & Saatchi and BBH India.

Lion New Zealand, the largest alcoholic beverage company in the market, has appointed PHD as its new media agency following a competitive pitch. PHD will be responsible for driving integrated media campaigns across all media channels. The incumbent is EssenceMediacom which has been working with the brand for the past five years. The new contract will start on November 1, 2024.

Wilf Sweetland has joined Declan Cahill & Leah-Churchill Brown at Exit as co-managing
partner. Beginning his career at Exit in 1998 as a runner, Sweetland left and then rejoined in 2003 with Mark Molloy as a director-producer team. He has now rejoined, reuniting with Cahill as co-managing partner. Both will lead Exit across Australia and Aotearoa / New Zealand, with Brown executive producing in Australia. He joined from Fred where he was an executive producer. Before that, he served at Sweetshop for over 12 years.

Leslie Goh, chief operating officer and managing partner of DDB Group Singapore, will leave the agency after over 16 years. Goh joined Tribal DDB Singapore as a project manager in 2008 and was promoted all the way to COO in 2015. Before DDB, she worked at YellowCube and Proximity in her early career.

SeenThis, an adaptive streaming technology company from Sweden, has launched its new office in Tokyo, Japan. Setsuko Iijima will lead the Tokyo office. Before joining SeenThis, she was most recently head of mid-market sales at Outbrain.

Today the Brave has appointed Cyndall McInerney as senior copywriter, partnering with art director, Kate Idle. Joining from The Monkeys, part of Accenture Song, McInerney was a copywriter, who won international awards when she was in Sydney and at TBWA and Krow Group in London.

Cashify, an Indian re-commerce platform, has appointed Ujjwal Sinha as head of marketing. In his new role, Sinha will oversee and direct all aspects of consumer marketing at Cashify. Before joining Cashify, he served as associate vice president of marketing at CARS24. Prior to that, he held senior marketing positions at AutoPortal India and Tata Motors.

Publicis Manila has appointed Cristina Sanchez as executive creative director. Before joining Publicis and relocating to Manila, she was an ECD at Iris Singapore. She is a copy-based ECD with over 22 years of experience working at agencies in Manila, Ho Chi Minh, Kuala Lumpur, London, New York, Chicago and Singapore. 

Mutinex has announced that its APAC CEO Mat Baxter will transition to a board adviser effective September 30.  He was the former global CEO of IPG agencies like Initiative and Huge and relocated from New York to Australia to join Mutinex in May this year. Baxter said he decided to resign as “there’s not enough space” for both him and Henry Innis, global CEO and cofounder of Mutinex, in the day-to-day business and he will “continue to be an investor and shareholder”.

Ekimetrics has appointed Christina Cen as general manager for China. With nearly 20 years of experience, Cen served in consulting senior roles at top firms, innovation leadership and entrepreneurial ventures. Before joining Ekimetrics, Cen was cofounder and president of a startup, Coldlake Tech. Prior to that, she worked at Monitor Deloitte, Cargill, McDonald’s, McKinsey & Company, Inchcape and Bain & Company.

Milieu Insight has appointed Sundip Chahal as its new CEO. Chahal, who previously served as group COO at YouGov during his 18-year tenure, will focus on driving Milieu Insight's global expansion into markets such as the US and UK, while continuing to strengthen its leadership in Southeast Asia. Prior to his time at YouGov, Chahal also worked for Ipsos for over four years. Meanwhile, Gerald Ang, the founder of Milieu Insight, will now concentrate on product innovation and business strategy. Ang shared he views Chahal's appointment as an opportunity to accelerate the company’s growth, allowing him to focus on enhancing the Canvas platform, which has been utilised by clients such as Hubspot, Dentsu, and CNBC. 

Clemenger BBDO has significantly added to its strategy team with four new industry hires. The appointments of experience strategy director Jon (JT) Turton, senior strategy director Vanessa (Ness) Quincey, head of product Maya Mausli and head of strategy Brooke Thompson add specialist expertise across a wide strategy spectrum. The strategy moves follow the launch of the Social, PR & Influence practice Chemistry Set to help brands design culture and build fame.

Tourism Australia has appointed Jennifer Doig as the new regional general manager for South and South East Asia, effective immediately. Doig brings over 20 years of marketing experience in the Asia region, including her most recent role as director of global campaigns at Dubai Tourism. Her career also spans roles with global brands such as Sony Pictures Entertainment, Turner Broadcasting, Ogilvy, and Edelman. In her new role, she will lead Tourism Australia's trade and consumer marketing strategies, reporting to Andrew Hogg, executive general manager, Eastern Markets and Aviation. 

KFC Singapore has hired Jaslyn Lam as its new markting director. Lam jumps from VCCP Singapore where she worked as business director, managing key accounts such as Cathay Pacific, Johnson & Johnson and Shell. Prior to her stint at VCCP, Lam worked at GOVT and Saatchi & Saatchi. Lam is taking over from Juliana Lim, who is transitioning to lead Pizza Hut in Singapore as its new general manager. As part of the new role, Lam will work towards enhancing KFC's brand development , operational efficiency and revenue growth. 

Havas Media Network has named Rebecca Tos as managing partner ANZ for Consumer Science and Analytics (CSA)—a global data and technology consultancy now launching in the ANZ market. Tos, who previously led Havas Media Market, brings over 25 years of experience in leadership roles across marketing, tech, and digital. Her background includes leadership roles at Merkle and Columbus. In her new role, Tos will lead the CSA’s expansion across Australia and New Zealand, following Havas’ acquisition of Catchi in 2018. CSA, which operates in 12 countries with over 400 data scientists and engineers, helps clients optimise growth through data-driven insights. 

Upcycle Communications has announced new client wins and the return of Felicia Poh as account director. Poh, with over eight years of experience at Uniqlo Singapore, W Communications, and Burson Cohn & Wolfe, will lead the agency’s 10-person team and drive its growth strategy. The agency’s portfolio includes new projects with COTY, Nixta, and Huize Van Wely, along with major launches such as The Singapore Edition and Conrad Singapore Orchard.

Viddsee has announced the appointments of Christopher Cumming as vice president, commercial, and Irsyaduddin Ifwat as associate creative director. Cumming, who previously held leadership roles at Cue Group, Wavemaker, and Wunderman Thompson, has worked with major brands such as Cetaphil, Lego, and adidas, bringing expertise in driving business growth through innovative marketing strategies. Ifwat, formerly with SATS and PropertyGuru, will lead creative development alongside Afiq Jaafar, tapping into his background in high-profile creative projects to elevate Viddsee’s branded content production.

GT Communications has appointed Katie Rodwell as general manager, effective 1 October. Rodwell, currently director of client services, has been with the agency since 2021 and has played a key role in overseeing client services across the East and West coasts. She will relocate from Perth to Sydney in early 2025 to lead the agency’s Sydney office. 

One NZ has appointed FCB Aotearoa as its agency of record following the launch of its new ‘Let’s Get Connected’ platform. FCB Media has been working with the brand since 2022. The new brand campaign, 'Let’s Get Connected', was developed in close collaboration with One NZ and strategist David (DT) Thomason. 

OpenX Technologies has appointed Clay Gill as regional VP of buyer development, APAC. In this new role, Gill will lead the buyer development team across the region, working closely with holding companies, independent agencies, and brands to harness the benefits of programmatic for campaign performance. Before OpenX, he was chief data and technology officer of IPG Mediabrands Australia. Gill brings more than 25 years of experience in the digital advertising industry, having held senior leadership positions at IPG, The Trade Desk, and WPP. He will report to Mitchell Greenway, managing director, APAC.

Leah Jackson has joined GroupM Australia as group director, commerce strategy. Prior to joining GroupM, Jackson was head of digital, media and marketing effectiveness at Goodman Fielder. Before that, she also served as customer experience and UX lead of Dyson and head of customer engagement marketing at Foxtel Group. Earlier in her career, she worked at Pernod Ricard, 303 Sydney, Publicis Mojo, and Clemenger BBDO.

LePub Singapore has appointed Stephan Schwarz as its executive creative director to lead its Asia-Pacific headquarters. Read more about this appointment. 

Youngkind, a strategic insights agency, has launched, founded by Amanda Windus, former managing director QLD at The Lab Insights & Strategy. This specialist strategic youth insights agency is about bridging generational gaps and providing brands and organisations with strategies aimed at young people.

Bastion has acquired one of New Zealand’s digital experience agencies, Catch Design. Founded in Wellington in 2005 by Hamish Stevenson, Catch Design has grown from a digital experience design studio into a full-service digital agency. The team will join the wider team across digital customer and technology experience and digital transformation led by managing director Tim den Braber.  

Think HQ has acquired Sydney-based Loud Communications. This acquisition is Think HQ’s second, following the integration of multicultural engagement specialists CultureVerse in 2019.