MEAComS joins Edelman affiliate network

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Edelman and MEAComS have signed an agreement naming MEAComS as Edelman’s exclusive affiliate in Eygpt. MEAComS will form an integral part of the Edelman network of affiliates by providing local expertise and on-the-ground market support to Edelman. MEAComS’ staff and clients will have access to Edelman’s regional and global network of experts, best practices and professional development and training programs.

“Edelman is renowned for setting industry standards,” says Fatma Z. Ahmed, Managing Director, MEAComS. “We are proud to affiliate with a global firm whose reputation for innovation and an integrated approach to strategic communications in meeting client needs proceeds them. We at MEAComS share many of Edelman’s core values and work diligently to ensure the same success for our clients. Our partnership will give Edelman greater insight into Egypt and the Middle East while we gain important know-how and experience as we continue to grow our own influence regionally. We look forward to a fruitful relationship that is win-win for Edelman and MEAComS.”

Robert Holdheim, CEO of Edelman South Asia, Middle East & Africa adds, “Egypt is an exciting, rapidly emerging and important market in the Middle East and North Africa region. As a long-standing partner of Edelman in Egypt, we know that MEAComS shares Edelman’s commitment to excellence and quality in meeting our clients’ needs. This affiliation marks a new chapter in our alliance, adding considerable value to our present client portfolio in Egypt and enhancing the significant future growth potential in this important market for Edelman. We look forward to a long and prosperous partnership in Egypt.”

PublicisLive appoints new President

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Publicis Groupe has appointed Anthony Gazagne as the President of PublicisLive, an events agency within the Groupe’s network MSLGROUP, specialising in the production of international conferences and prestige events. Anthony has spent the majority of his career at Publicis Groupe; since joining Publicis Dialog in 1998, he has held the positions of Project Manager, Director of Operations, Vice President of Operations and most recently, since 2008, Managing Director of PublicisLive. Anthony’s predecessor, John Rossant, who held the position of President since 2008, will leave Publicis Groupe to continue the development of his foundation, The New Cities Foundation and other personal projects.

“Anthony Gazagne is an extraordinarily worthy successor to John,” says Maurice Lévy, Chairman and CEO, Publicis Groupe. “This promotion is a natural next step for Anthony within our Groupe. Thanks to the hard work and dedication of its employees, PublicisLive is today one of the most well renowned and prestigious events agencies worldwide. Anthony’s international experience and professionalism will be deeply valuable as PublicisLive continues to go from strength to strength. Anthony is tasked with taking the agency to the next level, and I thank John Rossant for his untiring commitment and efforts to date, wishing him the best of luck with his future projects.”

Anthony adds, “Being named President of PublicisLive is a huge honour, and a testament to the Groupe’s recognition of both my and my entire team’s performance at PublicisLive. I would also like to thank Maurice Lévy and Olivier Fleurot [CEO, MSLGROUP] for the confidence they have placed in me. After more than 15 years at the heart of this impressive company, I look back with pride and also relish the prospect of the formidable challenge in front of me. PublicisLive regularly supports local government, international organisations and foundations – notably the World Economic Forum, our long-term client – to achieve their aims. Our role, one that is constantly evolving to deliver best in class leadership solutions for our clients, is at an important crossroads. We will focus on continued organic growth, while also looking at a range of external opportunities to further maximise growth.”

Promotions at PRCo

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Duaa Radwan has been promoted to the position of Account Director at the Dubai offices of specialist travel PR agency PRCo. Following time spent working for Arabic newspaper Akhbar Al Arab, bilingual Duaa joined PRCo as Account Executive in 2010. She has held the role of Account Manager since 2011, covering brands including Melia Hotels International, Le Royal Monceau Raffles Paris, ARMAGGAN, Nira Hotels and Resorts, The Alpina Gstaad and Food Fund International. As Account Director, Duaa will be responsible for overseeing PRCo’s existing clients, whilst growing the business portfolio of the company and supporting the day-to-day productivity and efficiency of the team.

“After five years of working at PRCo Dubai, I am very grateful for the trust that they have put in me,” says Duaa. “I still have many doors to open and many opportunities to explore and am excited to attract new clients, as well as maintain our existing portfolio.”

Facebook At Work app goes live

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Smartphone app Facebook At Work has officially hit iOS and Android app stores. With the software still in the early stages of development, a select number of test companies are currently eligible to download the app. Significantly, while the app appears and works similarly to the public Facebook network, there will be no advertisements and no tracking or holding of user data. A key feature of the Facebook At Work app is ‘Groups’, which aims to replace the ever-growing and never-ending email lists amongst employees.

With the launch of this app, Facebook will be competing with several companies seeking the top spot for social networking in the workplace. Other such companies include IBM, who has already developed a workplace social-networking service called Connections; Microsoft, which acquired social-enterprise company Yammer in 2012 and Slack – an enterprise-collaboration tool that was most recently valued at approximately $1 billion.

The date for Facebook At Work being launched to a wider availability has yet to be confirmed.

Charlotte Ringrose joins BNC Publishing

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Charlotte Ringrose has joined BNC Publishing as Senior Sales Manager. Prior to joining the team, Charlotte was Sales Manager with the hospitality division of ITP Publishing for two years, covering Hotelier Middle East, Caterer Middle East and Arabian Travel News. Adding to her experience, Charlotte also worked previously as a Media Sales Consultant for Johnston Press in the UK. In her new position, Charlotte will act as the first line of contact for the hospitality B2B print and digital segments.

“This is a promising shift for me,” says Charlotte. “As someone who has represented industry print and digital mediums in this market for years, I’m excited to put my experience to work at BNC’s hospitality arm. We’re going to do great things!”

Diarmuid O’Malley, Group Publishing Director at BNC Publishing adds, “Having Charlotte join our team is a real advantage to our commercial arm – we’ve worked together closely for years and it’s terrific to have an industry player like her representing our publications in the market.”

For further information, contact Charlotte at charlotte@bncpublishing.net / +971 (0)56 130 7753

 

Stephanie Kaur promoted at Nexa Digital

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Stephanie Kaur has been promoted to the position of Social Media Account Manager at Dubai-based digital marketing agency Nexa Digital. A member of the team since 2013, Stephanie most recently held the position of Senior Copywriter/Content Editor, overseeing and editing content creation for Nexa clients. As Social Media Account Manager, Stephanie’s responsibilities will include creating engaging concepts for clients across various social media platforms, managing across client content plans, monitoring engagement and interaction, as well as ensuring that the team are up to date with clients and their products.

“I’m so pleased to have been given an opportunity to branch out into social media account management,” says Stephanie. “It’s a brilliant stepping stone and is broadening my experience within the media industry.”

Posterscope appoints General Manager

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Out-of-home communications agency Posterscope – part of Dentsu Aegis Network – has promoted Abdallah Saab to the position of General Manager. Saab previously held the role of Business Development Director, having spent the previous seven years working for sister agency Carat.

Abdallah will continue his business development responsibilities in this new role, with focus on enhancing Posterscope’s offerings and driving the strategic direction of the business. His immediate responsibilities will include exploring new technologies, relationships and partnerships to meet the needs of the evolving out-of-home marketplace.

“Posterscope’s success is driven by consumer insight, innovation and market intelligence,” says Michael Nederlof, CEO, Dentsu Aegis Network MENA. “With more than a decade of experience within our network and unrivalled expertise in the region’s media, Abdallah is the perfect person to lead Posterscope and I am sure he will deliver a positive business advantage to both our network and his growing portfolio of clients.”

Abdallah adds, “Consumers are more connected with outdoors than ever before; this dynamic creates a tremendous opportunity for out-of-home to play a crucial role in solving our clients’ business challenges. I look forward to working with our clients and our partners to continue to evolve the Posterscope offering and drive innovation across out-of-home and the industry as a whole.”

Noor Bank launches brand campaign for 2015

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Noor Bank has launched a new month-long television commercial (TVC), starting January 2015, as part of a major brand-building initiative to coincide with the bank’s seventh anniversary celebrations.

The 30-second TVC targets investors and customers travelling to and within high footfall areas in Dubai. The brand film is set to air in-flight across 14,000 Emirates Airlines flights, as well as over 60 prominent screens at Terminals 1 and 3 of Dubai International Airport and across two giant screens on Dubai Mall’s walkways throughout January. In addition, it will play on a loop across Noor Bank’s ATM and CCDM displays in the city, the Noor Bank website and Noor Bank’s social media pages.

“The launch of the television commercial enables us to increase our brand visibility to a large cross-section of the Emirates’ population, including prospective investors and customers,” says Hussain Al Qemzi, CEO, Noor Bank. “As we mark our anniversary month, this brand film provides Noor Bank a flying start to consolidate the previous year’s accomplishments and rise to achieve greater success in 2015.”

In 2014, the Dubai-headquartered sharia-compliant bank underwent a major rebranding campaign that witnessed a transformation from Noor Islamic Bank to Noor Bank. The change was inspired by the rethinking of a number of internal touch-points, such as Noor Bank’s branches, websites and forms.

Havas Media launches LuxHub

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Havas Media Group has launched LuxHub, a global consulting division that will deliver media communications and marketing support for global luxury brands. Headquartered in Milan, the division will also launch across the Group’s established centres in London, Paris, Dubai and New York, with further expansion plans in Shanghai, Frankfurt, Hong Kong, Tokyo and Moscow later this year. Overseeing the strategic expansion for LuxHub is Isabelle Harvie-Watt, who has led plans for investment in a luxury division since her arrival as CEO Havas Media Group Italy in 2011.

“Luxury brands realise that they need to change the way they communicate,” says Isabelle. “Digital transformation is no longer an option. Growing online distribution and strong content strategies are the new norm. LuxHub is a great step forward to further closing the gap in language between agencies and luxury clients and the way luxury audiences are evolving.”

Dominique Delport, Global Managing Director of Havas Media Group adds, “Offering our clients the ability to connect to the luxury sector in a meaningful way has always been part of our strategy and I am delighted that we are now able to deliver this specialist consulting service to our clients on a global basis. The credibility we already have in this area, coupled with strong leadership from Isabelle to drive specialist teams in all the key markets, means we can provide new insights and innovative strategies both for luxury brands and brands who want to interact with the luxury audience.”

Isabelle Harvie-Watt and the LuxHub UK team, led by Tammy Smulder – who joins the team as Global Executive Director – will deliver their first study on luxury brands later this month. The project uses data from 1,000 people representing the top 10 percent of income earners in China, France, Germany, Italy, Russia, Spain, US, UAE and UK.