Omnicom Group has turned to former Unilever veteran Keki Dadiseth to lead its India operations as non-executive chairman.
The former Hindustan Lever (HLL) chairman's appointment follows the holding company's recent acquisition of Indian marketing services company Gotocustomer, although Omnicom Asia chairman Michael Birkin denied that the two events were linked. "We're looking to build our business, and we have many initiatives that require a senior resource on a permanent basis closer to the ground than me," he said.
Birkin also played down comparisons between Dadiseth's role and that of Omnicom Asia-Pacific president Serge Dumont, noting that Dadiseth remains non-executive. "He has a wealth of experience in both the agency world and major branded goods business — two extremely important things."
A Unilever veteran, Dadi-seth became chairman of HLL in 1996, before being named director of Unilever's global home and personal care portfolio in 2001. He retired from Unilever in 2005.
