Mediabrands’ recent reshuffle - which saw Ruth Stubbs replace Jeff Cressall as Asia president - marks the latest in a growing number of appointments at the top of the region’s agency networks.
The turnover has been extraordinary in recent months - Mike Amour at Grey has been replaced by Nirvik Singh, Miles Young at Ogilvy by Tim Isaac and Paul Heath, and Michelle Kristula-Green at Leo Burnett by Jarek Ziebinski. Meanwhile, Universal McCann has overhauled its structure by promoting Henry Tajer to regional president, Maxus has appointed Neil Stewart as its regional head and Saatchi & Saatchi has appointed UK marketer Justin Billingsley to a lead role in China.
The turnover has been extraordinary in recent months - Mike Amour at Grey has been replaced by Nirvik Singh, Miles Young at Ogilvy by Tim Isaac and Paul Heath, and Michelle Kristula-Green at Leo Burnett by Jarek Ziebinski. Meanwhile, Universal McCann has overhauled its structure by promoting Henry Tajer to regional president, Maxus has appointed Neil Stewart as its regional head and Saatchi & Saatchi has appointed UK marketer Justin Billingsley to a lead role in China.
Just what is driving so many changes at the top of the networks? Each appointment has its own circumstances, but there is a common theme in that agencies are looking to ensure their Asian networks are in the best possible shape as the region assumes greater prominence. That’s a view shared by Barry Cupples, CEO of Omnicom Media Group, who says the trend shows “the importance the Asia-Pacific region plays in most portfolios, be that client or agency.”
Duncan Cunningham, regional director for Greater China of talent management firm Aquent, argues that many of the recent departures have been in place for quite a while, “so the moves are more evolutionary than a direct result of the recession”. He adds, however, that “recession has brought changes at a country management level as networks consolidate and reposition their brands to operate in a different operating environment”.
There’s a sense that the top level of the networks needs to be refreshed regularly regardless of the economic situation - running a regional operation tends to involve a huge personal commitment and a lot of energy, two qualities many executives are able to give for only a few years at a time.
Beyond that, Matthew Godfrey, CEO Asia for Publicis, argues that the skills required to run an agency have changed. “Networks in Asia used to be small and not as well defined. Now we all have multiple service offerings, brands and infrastructure. There are often matrix management issues that require more attention to detail and egos.”
Understanding clients’ problems is the same today as it was during the economic crisis of 1997, says Godfrey, but the speed the industry is evolving means “decisions and responses are now required to match this pace of change”.
However, the decision to pull in new expertise from the client side, as a couple of networks have done, may be risky. According to Leo Burnett’s CEO of Greater China, Michael Wood, “history has shown that drawing from the client side has had mixed results. Some have been disasters.”
This may be due to that fact that “people running networks need deep understanding of how offices run,” adds Chris Thomas, BBDO’s Asia CEO. “Ex-clients will know how to talk to clients, but may not have that understanding.”
Ultimately, the pressure on Asia’s agency heads to deliver is growing, and, says Cunningham, it is becoming harder to find people to fit the role. “The demand today is for ‘commercial chameleons’ who are aware of every operating area of their industry,” he says. “They need the ability to create a vision, inspire, transform and deliver profitably in a changing environment.”
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