VMLY&R creates key verticals, names new regional leads

Global marketing agency VMLY&R is making a few changes to its regional focus as it looks to zoom in on six key areas - brand stewardship, advisory, commerce, content and media innovation, data & insights, and experience and technology, driving business growth by matching leadership, talent and skill-sets to this new structure.With creativity at its core, VMLY&R Asia’s  Brand Stewardship department will be working with clients to co-create not just a brand, but also impact its surrounding ecosystem via a holistic understanding of the business and industry, rather than just their communications. The practice will be led by Preethi Sanjeevi, who was recently elevated to managing director, Singapore.The Advisory practice headed up by Oliver Eriksson, managing director, Advisory Services, aims to help clients to bring structure to the unstructured business problems they may face in the connected age through services. This ranges from running innovation programmes to advising on marketing technologies.The Commerce arm of the business is centered on driving revenue for brands and building loyalty along the customer lifecycle. It will be led by Yi-Chung Tay, co-CEO, VMLY&R Asia, who has moved to Singapore from Shanghai, China. To bolster the growth of this practice, Nick Pan has been appointed managing director, strategy and commerce, while Sujay Kar takes on the role of group director, eCommerce, SEA and India.Tying closely into commerce, the agency’s Content and Media Innovation pillar aims to hels clients “derive more value for their brands, both in terms of developing rich brand-owned assets, as well as from their own content and media investments”. With Camellia Tan, managing director, strategic growth at the helm of this practice, the agency is looking to expand into platform partnerships and explore untapped avenues of growth for its clients.The Data and Insights practice will leverage expanded data capabilities that drive measurable business growth. It will focus on using insights to discover the true state of business, map the white spaces and derive predictive growth opportunities. Spearheading this practice are Hari Ramanathan, chief strategy officer and chief transformation officer, and Rajeev Lochan, who has transitioned to vice president, insights.Experience Design and Technology rounds out VMLY&R’s service offerings with a strong focus on consumer experience (CX), the sum-totality of how consumers engage with brands. Donald Lim, regional head, experience design, will lead the team in bringing to life the experiences they design, keeping CX at the forefront as they engineer digital solutions to deliver value to customers.The agency said the leadership team, as part of a business reorganisation, will align the company more closely with the changing needs of its clients. The new structure creates a full integrated offering and streamlined access to talent and resources. The reorganisation is guided by the agency’s go-to-market strategy, which focuses on harnessing creativity, technology and culture to create connected brands that drive value for clients.“By honing-in on these new growth pillars, we are creating the most relevant and contemporary agency offering in the market today.  We are now in a strong position to help our clients to build connected brands – futureproofing their business,” said Tripti Lochan, co-CEO, VMLY&R Asia.“By aligning our business to the changing needs of our clients, these appointments put the right talent where they should be, standing us in good stead to continue our strong growth strategy in the region.”