DDB Group SG names ECDs as Chris Chiu exits, beefs up TX unit

Marketing agency DDB Group Singapore has promoted Thomas Yang and Benson Toh as executive creative directors to lead its regional and local accounts respectively. This comes as its group chief creative officer Chris Chiu exits the company after four years. According to David Tang, CEO and president, DDB Group Singapore, Chiu is leaving the group to pursue his passions. "He’s given a lot to DDB and especially on McDonald’s, with some superb and hardworking work in a challenging climate. He’ll always be a friend here at DDB and we wish him all the best ahead," Tang added.

As executive creative directors, Yang and Toh will jointly take charge of the agency’s 102-strong creative department, spearheading highly integrated campaigns. Yang (pictured left) steps up from deputy ECD to lead DDB's creative output while Toh (pictured right) assumes responsibility for Tribal in Singapore. During his time with Tribal, Toh has built the agency's Total Experience (TX) solutions covering digital, social content, and tech innovation.

Neil Johnson, creative chairman at DDB, said both Yang and Toh have done a “stellar job” of leading its teams of more than 100 creatives. “Thomas and Benson are two incredibly talented leaders, respected and loved by clients and peers. We need talent, bandwidth, and depth in our teams and leaders to continue delivering agile, integrated, and breakthrough creative work,” he added.

Additionally, DDB Group Singapore has hired three more leaders for its TX business arm. The group has appointed Mario Van der Meulen as head of customer experience for TX, Ida Ong as engagement director in the TX business consulting team, and Ravi Eshwar as creative director. Van der Meulen will look after the user experience and customer experience department. He was previously with Frog Design Shanghai and Foolproof Singapore, and has over 25 years' experience working on brands such as DBS, Visa, Amgen, and various Singapore government agencies. Meanwhile, Ong, who will be under account servicing, has eight years of experience delivering business and technology solutions for Ford, Castrol, and Telkomsel on their digital marketing and transformation initiatives. Ong had previous stints at agencies Publicis Sapient and VMLY&R. Eshwar has also had more than 25 years of experience in the advertising world, according to his LinkedIn. He had previously been with agencies such as Ogilvy and Grey, and helmed the role of senior creative director, head of copy, at BBDO Singapore for more than 10 years. All three hires will report to Leslie Goh, chief operating officer at Tribal Worldwide Asia.

The string of hires comes as Tribal's TX has transformed the agency’s offering to be over 50% technology-led over the past two years. As a result, the agency wants to further strengthen the business consulting arm.

DDB Group Singapore has also promoted Herry Budiyanto to head of technology for TX, to bolster the agency group’s growth transformation as a digital, tech development, and content hub.

Previously the principal consultant for technology, Budiyanto will continue to lead a team of 30 technologists in his new role. He is tasked to develop agile solutions for commercial and public sector clients and cement partnerships with enterprise brands such as Adobe, Sitecore, Microsoft, Alibaba Group, and GovTech.

Despite a challenging year, DDB Group Singapore has seen positive results in 2020. It produced eight of the top 10 most-watched videos on YouTube for the first half of 2020 and won several coveted new accounts, including the Monetary Authority of Singapore (MAS), Unilever, and Singapore Institute of Management. The agency also topped the MARKETING-INTERACTIVE’s MARKies Awards 2020 for the category of Overall Creative Ideas.

Toh said: “This has been a tough year, but it has brought out the best in us. 2020 has taught us to be more agile, digital, and sophisticated in our range of creative work. Yang and I enjoy a natural partnership and we look forward to taking our working relationship to the next level.”

Earlier in August this year, DDB Group Singapore promoted its deputy president Jeff Cheong to the role of deputy CEO, as it sets its sights to accelerate marketing innovation for the future. In addition to his current role as head of Tribal Worldwide in Asia and Singapore, Cheong (pictured) has also been named on the DDB Worldwide executive leadership team.

Cheong laid out a three-pronged plan for the agency in the next 12 months, which aims to bolster its leadership position in Singapore and regionally. He focuses on the following areas: strategic partnerships within the industry to identify opportunities for growth in new sectors; expanding the group’s Telling Stories division with branded and entertainment content, and equipping the next generation of DDB leaders with vital skills for the future.

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