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Neeraj BansalSocial and video advertising technology company Adknowledge Asia has announced the appointment of Neeraj Bansal as Country Head for India.

Neeraj joins Adknowledge Asia with over 20 years of experience in building and scaling businesses and brands, defining strategy, and running operations for companies such as IgniteWorld, Reliance Jio, Google and Sony Ericsson. The passionate digital evangelist joined Google in 2009 to work with digital advertising in its early stages. At Google, Neeraj played an integral role in the creation and scaling of SMB business and building of a global expansion team to help advertisers drive export revenue & their expansion into international markets. He also worked on building and scaling Google business in emerging markets in EMEA.

With Neeraj, Adknowledge Asia poises itself to take on India’s burgeoning digital advertising market, currently worth over $1bn and expected to more than triple by 2020. As new Country Head, Neeraj will be responsible for expanding Adknowledge Asia’s presence in India and take the lead in growing the sales and operations teams to hit Adknowledge’s goal of reaching 10% of Facebook and YouTube ad sales in Asia. He will report to Damien Lavin, Chief Revenue Officer for Adknowledge Asia, based in Singapore.

 


 

cassieThe St. Regis Singapore welcomed Ms. Cassie Chew as its new Director of Marketing Communications on 11th July 2016.

With over a decade of experience in hospitality and communications, Cassie joins the Best Address after stints at several renowned hospitality establishments.

These include being part of the pre-opening team at The Patina, Capitol Singapore to spearhead communications initiatives, as well as her roles with Fairmont Raffles Hotels International, Goodwood Park Hotel, Meritus Hotels & Resorts, and Treetops Executive Residences where she was instrumental in driving the full spectrum of marketing and brand communication efforts. On a personal level, Cassie holds a Masters of Science in Communication Management and was a nominee of the 2012 PRISM Award under the Young Outstanding PR Professional category.

 


 

AppNexus, the world’s leading independent advertising technology company, announced a partnership with Spotify to enable programmatic buying across Spotify’s global audio inventory. Under the terms of the partnership, buyers will be able to upload audio creatives and purchase inventory using AppNexus’ Programmable DSP, which supports all digital media types including display, mobile, native, audio, and instream and outstream video. The deal represents ongoing momentum in the adoption of AppNexus’ Publisher Suite by premium content producers that require a real-time, open, and independent monetization solution.

AppNexus’ audio capabilities, currently in closed Beta, enable advertisers to easily upload VAST audio files within the Console interface using any .wav, .mp3, or .ogg audio file. The input audio is then transcoded into multiple formats and bit rates and served via Content Delivery Network (CDN). Buyers can access supply from Spotify through private deals to leverage the seller’s unique data offerings. Buyers using AppNexus’ Console will have access to the same tools they use today for their display and video buying.

 


 

Ben GibsonF5 Networks announced the addition of Ben Gibson to its executive team as Chief Marketing Officer and Executive Vice President, reporting to the CEO.

Gibson will be responsible for overseeing the company’s global marketing strategy, as F5 further expands into the growth areas of application security and cloud application deployment.

He brings to F5 over 25 years of management experience in product, field, and channel marketing, as well as advertising, digital strategy, and corporate communications. Most recently, he was Chief Marketing Officer at Veritas, where he led a global team of marketing professionals and spearheaded that company’s rebranding efforts following a spin-off from Symantec. Prior to Veritas, Gibson spent five years as Chief Marketing Officer at Aruba Networks. During his tenure, Aruba doubled in annual revenue as it expanded from wireless networking into adjacent mobile security and location services.

Before joining Aruba, Gibson spent five years at Cisco Systems, most recently as Vice President of Data Center/Virtualization Marketing, where he ran the outbound marketing strategy and execution for a number of Cisco’s application networking products. He has also held leadership roles in product marketing at Meru Networks and Proxim Corporation.

Gibson will start on Monday, August 1, and be based in F5’s San Jose office. He has a B.A. in Journalism from California State University, Long Beach.

 


 

SriAdobe announces the appointment of V.R Srivatsan as the new Managing Director for the company’s Southeast Asia operations, stepping into the position recently vacated by Stephen Hamill, who has decided to leave Adobe.

Sri most recently served as Managing Director, ASEAN at Autodesk where he was responsible for managing the growth of the business. The role also involved driving transformation of the business from a traditional desktop and perpetual license model to a SaaS and cloud based business model. Prior to that Sri was Managing Director for SAP in Malaysia, Vice President, South Asia Region, at Business Objects and held several senior positions at Oracle.

Sri’s appointment comes at a timely moment for Adobe as the company accelerates the development of its enterprise business across Southeast Asia. He will lead Adobe’s growth across this dynamic region and will report to Paul Robson, President of Adobe Asia Pacific.

 


 

Media OutReach, Asia Pacific's first full service newswire, announced the expansion of its business in the region with the opening of a new office in Singapore and signing of AsiaOne as a strategic content partner.

Media OutReach has a strong database in Singapore with more than 2,600 journalists and bloggers in the country.

The partnership will allow Media OutReach to provide greater audience reach for its clients' news releases in Singapore.

Besides working directly with both local and multinational clients, Media OutReach also assisted many PR agencies across the Asia-Pacific region to target countries or media that the agencies may need support with. The company’s media monitoring with analysis service aims to assist clients with multi-country responsibilities to monitor and generate intelligence on the overall effectiveness of their communications strategies. Media OutReach's service is highly targeted and geared to each client's brief. All the news items are delivered into a portal which can archive the content and facilitate 24/7 generation of news coverage reports and a media intelligence news dashboard.

 


 

Marketing communications agency Text100 announced to run Qoo10’s external communications’ program in Singapore.

Under this remit, Text100 will be tasked to strengthen brand awareness for Qoo10 and further cement its brand position as the online shopping destination of choice for Singaporeans.

The trend for online shopping and eCommerce continues to grow in Singapore and the nation’s ardent shoppers are expected to increase their online retail activities. In a report by PayPal and Ipsos earlier this year, online expenditure by Singapore consumers is expected to grow 55% till 2017, while mobile commerce will almost double and grow by 190% within the same time period.

Of its six online eCommerce marketplaces Qoo10 operates across Asia (Singapore, Japan, Indonesia, Malaysia, Hong Kong and China), Singapore is the best performing market with 2.2 million active users registered to date and over SGD1billion cumulative revenue recorded since its launch in June 2010.

 


 

Marc DragonY3 Technologies, a leading supply chain management solutions company, announced the appointment of Marc Dragon as Chief Executive Officer.

In his new role, Marc will be responsible for driving business growth, enhancing Y3’s solution portfolio and strategies, as well as driving operational excellence to support the vision of growing Y3 as the region’s Supply Chain and Omni-channel Technology solutions leader.

Marc has over 18 years of experience serving clients in Asia Pacific, and has been in multiple leadership roles at IBM, Deloitte Consulting and Antuit. He has also co-authored multiple whitepapers, and is a frequent speaker in the region, especially on the subjects of big data, Analytics and Supply Chain Management.

Besides his corporate experience, Marc has been actively involved in the startup scene in Singapore, having founded two analytics startups. He is also an investment committee member of Supply Chain Angels, a National Research Foundation supported incubator in Singapore.

Marc is certified in Production and Inventory Management (CPIM) from The Association for Operations Management (APICS) and holds an IT Infrastructure Library (ITIL) Foundation Certification. He is a member of Mensa, and graduated with an Honours Degree in Electrical & Electronic Engineering.

 


 

Steve RotterOutSystems, the provider of the number one platform for low-code application development, announced the appointment of Steve Rotter as Chief Marketing Officer (CMO).

Having led innovative marketing teams for more than 20 years, Rotter established himself as a brand champion at technology companies such as Brightcove, Adobe and Motorola. As a marketing trailblazer, Steve has been recognized as one of the top 100 influencers in content and online marketing, received a CMO ROI award from IDC, and a prestigious "Stackies Award" from ChiefMarTec. Earlier in his career, Rotter was co-founder of Q-Link Technologies, a Business Process Management platform company focused on rapid application development, which had been acquired by Adobe.

At OutSystems, Rotter will oversee global marketing operations, demand generation, partner marketing, and he will guide the company's brand and communications strategy.

Building on their record-setting business growth and the continued market demand for low-code solutions, the company has already hired 100 new employees in 2016 and recently announced a $55 million investment from North Bridge Growth Equity. Recently, OutSystems has been named a Leader in The Forrester Wave: Low-Code Development Platforms 2016, as well as recognized as a Visionary in the Gartner June 2016 Magic Quadrant for Mobile App Development Platforms, and awarded an SIIA CODiE Award for Best Mobile Development Platform.

 


 

grey logo 312x2582xGrey Group has acquired a majority stake in Easycom, a progressive and well-established ePR and social media agency in China with a blue chip clientele.

The communications ecosystem in China has evolved dramatically in the last two years. Social has penetrated into marketing communication, e-commerce, PR, and CRM, and social media is now a prerequisite assignment for all marketers.

This acquisition will accelerate Grey’s growth in one of the world’s most dynamic emerging economies, and offer clients access to a wide portfolio of leading-edge multi-disciplinary marketing services and holistic solutions.

Founded in Shanghai in 2006, Easycom has a headcount of more than 40 full-time staff, with strong capabilities and extensive experience in social media strategy, KOL management, social content creation, social campaign management, S2O (Social to Offline) event activation, media relations and crisis management.

The agency has a premier roster of clients including L'Oréal, LVMH, Philips, Diageo, Boehringer-Ingelheim, Kiehl’s, Coty, and China Merchants Bank.

Easycom will focus on building the scale and breadth required to address clients’ most pressing branding and marketing needs, by combining Grey’s strength in the brand strategy and creative, with its in-depth know-how in China’s exploding social media space.

 


 

Ted PhotoSocial and video advertising technology company Adknowledge Asia has announced the appointment of Ted Kim (Tae-Woo) as Country Director for Korea.

Ted joins Adknowledge Asia with over 10 years of experience in digital marketing, having held senior roles at Samsung, Microsoft, Hewlett-Packard and Google. Most notably, Ted played a formative part in launching Twitter in Korea. Ted’s latest role was Managing Director, Korea for Teads.tv, a native video advertising company.

The new hire comes after a period of aggressive growth for the company. It was announced in March this year that Adknowledge Asia would be doubling their headcount in 2016 following the appointment of Matt Sutton as CEO of Adknowledge Asia.

As Country Director for Korea, Ted will be responsible for expanding the team, raising Adknowledge Asia’s profile and leading the sales and operational teams. He will report to Damien Lavin, Chief Revenue Officer for Adknowledge Asia, based in Singapore.

 


 

Andrew Hamilton 01Getty Images announces the appointment of Andrew Hamilton in the newly created role of SVP of Data and Insights – a pioneering role which sits on the company’s Executive Committee.

As Senior Vice President of Data and Insights, Andrew Hamilton is responsible for Getty Images’ overall data strategy and the development of in-depth customer insights to grow the business.

Prior to joining Getty Images in New York, Andrew was based in London where he held roles as Global Head of Security and, more recently, Global Head of Strategy and Planning at customer science company dunnhumby. As a member of the dunnhumby Executive Committee, Andrew was involved in end-to-end strategy development, mergers and acquisitions, portfolio management and business change programs.

Prior to joining dunnhumby, Andrew held senior management consulting roles at Accenture in London, UK and Booz Allen Hamilton in the US. An accountant early in his career, Andrew was later a Captain in the United States Marine Corps specializing in information systems and security.

Based in New York and reporting to Getty Images CEO Dawn Airey, Andrew’s appointment marks the next step in Getty Images’ strategy to extend its core B2B licensing business and establish new revenue streams in the consumer market.

This hire follows a series of recent new appointments to Getty Images’ Executive Committee as the company drives forward its strategy for growth. In June 2016, the company announced a new Innovation Group spearheaded by Steve Heck, Chief Innovation Officer. These appointments follow the launch of the OutSystems, a new business dedicated to the creation and global distribution of virtual reality content.

 


 

HagaiEmarsys announced that Hagai Hartman, co-founder and CEO, will fully focus his attention on innovation to further strengthen the company’s competitiveness in a rapidly changing market. In his new role as Chief Innovation Officer (CINO) he will drive breakthrough innovation, product development based on artificial intelligence and its rapid roll-out to customers.

The Board has accepted Hartman’s decision to re-orient his focus and place greater emphasis on delivery of the company vision. The change will be effective July 11, 2016.

The Board, led by the chairman Josef Ahorner and with Matt Blodgett, Managing Director at Vector Capital, fully support Mr. Hartman’s recommendation to appoint Ohad Hecht as CEO. Hecht built Emarsys’ market-leading presence in Asia-Pacific between 2010 and 2014 and returned to Vienna to serve as the company’s COO in 2014. In his new role, Hecht will focus on sustaining the company’s rapid growth by driving international expansion, including further penetration of the US market.

Josef Ahorner, Hagai Hartman and Daniel Harari, who co-founded the company in 2000, have led Emarsys through a tremendous growth phase in the past decade. Under their leadership, Emarsys grew into a global business with more than 2,000 customers in 140 countries worldwide and 16 offices with more than 600 employees around the globe.

 


 

Ketchum Singapore announced significant additions and promotions to the senior management team as it strengthens its position as the agency’s regional hub for Southeast Asia.

Under the leadership of John Bailey, ICON’s founder and Managing Director, Ketchum Singapore, the senior management team will focus on growing Ketchum’s best-in-class issues and crisis business across the region, and Ketchum’s footprint across Asia Pacific.

Key appointments include:

  • Judith KnightJudith Knight, a 10-year veteran with Ketchum Singapore and its predecessor ICON, is promoted from Senior Vice President to Deputy General Manager, assuming responsibility for the agency’s day to day operations in addition to continuing to lead a number of major client engagements. With more than 20 years of industry experience, Knight joined ICON in 2006 and played an integral part in its development into the largest locally-owned PR agency in Singapore before it was acquired by Ketchum in November 2013.

 

 

  • Renee BenderRenee Bender, joins Ketchum as Senior Vice President, Creative and Digital, spearheading the agency’s creative vision, digital and social media strategy and accelerating its development into Ketchum’s strategic design hub for the region. Bender was previously Group Creative Director with the digital agency Critical Mass, where she spent almost 18 years as creative lead on major accounts across FMCG, luxury retail, automotive and travel/tourism brands.


  • Genevieve GohGenevieve Goh, joins Ketchum Change’s Asia Pacific team as Consultant. Goh is an occupational psychologist who spent five years working for consulting firms in the UK in the areas of change management, leadership development and talent management.

Ketchum Singapore was founded in 2005 as ICON Communications and joined Ketchum as an exclusive affiliate in 2008.

 


 
Pierre TesznerRockwell Automation, the world’s largest company dedicated to industrial automation and information, announced the appointment of Pierre Teszner as new Regional Director for Southeast Asia.

Based in Singapore, Teszner will be responsible for sales and marketing across all of Southeast Asia, as well as business operations in Indonesia, Malaysia, Philippines, Singapore, Thailand, and Vietnam.

Teszner has a 22-year track record achieving financial results by honing human-capital skills, differentiating brands in adverse conditions, and building a variety of direct and indirect channels in challenging business-to-business markets globally.

Prior to Rockwell Automation, Teszner held various leadership roles at Schneider Electric for more than 15 years in Cambodia, Japan, Korea, Taiwan, Vietnam, the Americas, Europe, Middle East and Africa. For the last three years, he served as Vice President EcoBuilding, Commercial, Asia-Pacific, located in Singapore.

Teszner is replacing Robert (Bob) Buttermore, who served as Regional Director, Southeast Asia, since 2013. Recognized for his significant achievements, Buttermore has been named Managing Director, Greater China, in Shanghai. He will work to accelerate growth in China, the company’s second largest market.