TheMarketingblog

Movers and Groovers : Brand Union – extensive reorganisation of its Asia Pacific operations and management team

WPP’s global brand strategy and design agency, Brand Union today announces an extensive reorganisation of its Asia Pacific operations and management team. The new model will offer prospects and current Brand Union clients the ability to grow across the Asian market.

As part of this restructure Brand Union will be appointing Monica Lee (currently CEO, North Asia) and Graham Hitchmough (currently CEO, South and Southeast Asia) to the roles of Chairman and CEO respectively for the region.

Lee and Hitchmough will be supported by a refreshed regional management team comprising of Ambrish Chaudhry, Head of Strategy; Dan Ellis, Head of Design; and Po Kay Lee who will be assuming the newly created position of Head of Experience.

The extended offering from Brand Union comes after the agency has witnessed more and more Asian brands gearing up to compete on the global stage.

As domestic and international brands position themselves to better serve the emerging Asian middle class, the need for organisations to manage their brand experience effectively across multiple geographies, channels, business lines and consumer segments, has never been greater.

Brand Union’s new APAC leadership model will result in connected, cross-regional support for the agency’s clients seeking brand-led growth within the Asian market. Its remit will be to build a hyper-connected, multi-disciplined, borderless business model that will deliver the best blend of insight, skills and branding services to support clients regardless of location or business challenge.

Monica Lee, Chairman, Brand Union APAC comments:

“The needs and outlook of our clients and the consumers they serve across the region are changing so rapidly that it’s vital for us to constantly evolve in order to advise and partner them better in their growth ambitions.

“Great brand experiences transcend borders, language and even culture, so we are committed to creating a more flexible, accessible, mobile and talent-rich ecosystem that our clients can draw from in a way that makes sense to them and the needs of their businesses, while providing new and exciting opportunities for our own people to develop.”

Graham Hitchmough, CEO, Brand Union APAC states:

“This restructure will allow us to maximise the great talent that we have across Asia Pacific by deploying them in a more efficient and focused way based on client need, rather than simply geography. It will result in a more agile and adaptive experience for our clients and add a new dimension to our relationship with our joint-venture partners Ogilvy & Mather and our affiliates across the WPP universe.”

The new management team has combined experience of over 35 years with Brand Union offices in Asia Pacific, The Middle East and Europe.