Mindshare APAC names head of innovation

Mindshare APAC, the global media agency network that is part of WPP, has appointed James Lewin to the role of head of innovation, Mindshare Asia Pacific in addition to his current client work at m/six.This comes days after the agency appointed Kevin Rooney, regional MD of m/six as the chief growth officer.Lewin’s role is multi-faceted, though consistently approached through the lens of Innovation.He is primarilt tasked with driving Mindshare’s philosophy of adaptive marketing, and more specifically planning for agility. To this end, Lewin will forge key technology partnerships to help Mindshare’s clients identify and capitalise upon both fixed and fluid cultural or brand energy moments.The partnerships will range from wearable technology and internet of things (IoT) to data visualisation to content distribution platforms. In this role Lewin will work in concert with Mindshare’s other regional specialists, such as the heads of content, digital, strategy and clients leadership. He will also build a regional network of local provocateurs; Innovation leads in each Mindshare market.With over 10 years of global experience and having worked with clients such as Unilever, HSBC, Motorola, Disney, Pepsi, Diesel Jeans and Nike, Lewin is well suited to spearhead the innovation agenda at Mindshare, said the company.Karl Cluck, chief client officer, Asia Pacific, commented on the appointment:“With his keen strategic insight, deeply creative mindset, strong technical understanding and breadth of experience in Asia — James really embodies the spirit of innovation at Mindshare. He’ll play a key and critical role in delivering communications planning and driving the partnerships that will bring our Adaptive Marketing proposition to life for our clients in this region. It’s really a delight to have him back in our network.”Lewin said:“Despite its size, scale and leadership position, Mindshare treats itself as being in a state of perpetual Beta; forever pushing the boundaries, challenging convention and constructively disrupting. The creation of this role is testament to their absolute commitment to innovation, and I couldn’t be more excited to work with the incredible talent throughout the region to drive this vital agenda.”