SingTel brand chief hangs up

Singapore - Singapore Telecommunications' (SingTel) director of brand experience, Sherie Ng, will leave the company at the end of February - just six months after she was brought on-board.

At press time, Ng could not be reached for comment but a SingTel spokesperson confirmed the news, saying she was leaving to pursue personal interests. In the interim, SingTel's consumer marketing, director of segment marketing and marcoms, Derrick Heng will take over Ng's brand experience portfolio and continue to report to VP of consumer marketing, Wong Soon Nam.

As director of brand experience, Ng was a senior figure at the company reporting directly to CEO Allen Lew and one of her first tasks was handing the review of SingTel's creative business which went from 20-year-long incumbent Young & Rubicam (Y&R) to BBDO in mid-January.

During an exciting five-month long pitch process, Y&R declined to pitch after being fast-tracked to the first shortlist while in the latter stages, more drama unfolded when Leo Burnett and Saatchi & Saatchi "after careful deliberation" dropped out of the pitch - leading SingTel to invite eventual winner BBDO into the next phase of the process.