Lowe rejigs Asia chief's job specs

The exclusive news comes after several media outlets reported last week that Gilbert's position would be eliminated, and he would instead work on areas such as acquisitions. However, according to Lowe Worldwide president and CEO Tony Wright, Gilbert's change in role will now see him leading two of the four Asia-Pacific regions -- which, will be clustered around specific 'lighthouse' creative offices. "Agencies will be clustered around four lighthouse operations; Sydney for Oceania, Mumbai for South Asia, Bangkok for Southeast Asia and Shanghai for North Asia," said Wright. "Initially, Nigel will focus primarily on North Asia and Southeast Asia." The South Asia cluster will be headed by chairman Prem Mehta and president and COO Pranesh Misra, while Lowe Hunt chairman/ECD Lionel Hunt will oversee Oceania. Each cluster will report directly to Lowe's HQ. "This leaner, more nimble structure capitalises on the strength of individual 'lighthouses' and empowers them to be the expert or leader in their market," added Wright. Gilbert denied that this would leave non-lighthouse offices in limbo. He also confirmed that Asia was not likely to suffer staffing cuts to be made at a middle management level elsewhere in the network, as it is already relatively lean after downsizing over the past year. The revamp comes as Lowe prepares to pick up a US$13 to $15 million brief from Nokia for its new generation handsets. The brief was awarded after a global holding company pitch against Grey, DDB, Euro RSCG, Bates and, reportedly, OgilvyOne. "China and India will play a very important role in this campaign," said Gilbert.