Move and win roundup: Havas, Ogilvy, WSJ, Acer, more

PEOPLE MOVES

Havas Media Group promoted Melvin Lim, the current CEO of Singapore, to the newly created role of chief commercial officer for Havas Media Group, APAC. Lim will continue to be the regional lead for Havas Sports & Entertainment. Jacqui Lim, the current MD of Singapore operations, will take over as the CEO of Havas Media Group, Singapore.

GroupM China re-hired Elvis Xu (许宏伟) as managing director of search marketing, effective 1 September 2016. Xu previously worked for GroupM’s search unit from 2013 to 2014. Prior to his return to GroupM, he was deputy general manager of Performics in Beijing.

Ogilvy Brisbane appointed Phil Nobay as executive creative director and part of its leadership team.  Nobay was most recently creative director of Publicis Pusher. He has also held senior roles at Clemenger BBDO, EuroRSCG and McCann-Erickson, TBWA\GGT, Wunderman Y&R and Grey in London.  He replaces Jonathan Drapes who left the agency several months ago to pursue personal projects.

Wall Street Journal's Andrew Dowell, deputy financial editor for the past year, will become APAC editor in January when Paul Beckett, current Asia editor, becomes Washington DC bureau chief and deputy managing editor.

Golin Singapore has hired Sushiv Mathur as digital director. He was previously account director at Wunderman, and will work with key Golin clients including McDonald's, SATS and Lux Global.  

Carat China appointed Judy Wang (王欢) as general manager of its key accounts including Mondelez’s biscuit and gum operations. She joins Carat from Mediabrands' UM Shanghai where she was general manager of client service.

MediaCom appointed Sonia Fernandes as chief talent officer, APAC. Based in Singapore, she will be responsible for bolstering learning and development programmes. Fernandes was most recently chief HR officer at KPMG. She will report to Mark Heap, CEO of MediaCom APAC.

Roid Sin (冼勝初), currently CEO of OMD Hong Kong, will take on a group-level role as chief growth officer of Omnicom Media Group Hong Kong. Deric Wong (黄国文), currently managing partner of strategy of OMD Hong Kong and China replaces Sin.

Production company Seven Sunday Films expanded its services in Southeast Asia by opening new offices in Singapore and Bangkok. The Singapore office will be led by executive producer Marge Foo, while the Bangkok office will be led by producer Golf.

Fanko Yim has co-founded Cirkol Limited, a new influencer search and campaign management platform.

Chris Chen has a new job as head of client acquisition at Achmea, an insurer in Canada. He was previously APAC director of digital innovations and e-commerce at AEGON, based in Hong Kong for four years.

BUSINESS WINS

Australia homebuilder Simonds Homes appointed Noisy Beast as its creative and media agency.  The agency has already launched the “Great Australian Dirt” campaign.

Suntory Beverage & Food Asia's Cerebos Health Supplement Division, known for its flagship product BRAND’S Essence of Chicken, has appointed Mirum Singapore to drive digital initiatives.

Acer Malaysia appointed UM Malaysia to handle its media businesses on a 12-month contract, starting August 1. UM won the account from incumbent Starcom Mediavest. The agency will be tasked to carry out work across traditional and digital media including radio, print, digital and out-of-home.