Magna MENA appoints new CEO

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MCN MEDIABRANDS has appointed Bassem Massoud to the role of CEO of Magna MENA. With over 17 years of experience in leadership positions, Bassem most recently held the role of Regional Managing Director. In his new role, Bassem will build strong relationships with clients focusing on transparency and outstanding business results.

“I am very excited about this assignment and the interesting opportunities it presents to us,” says Bassem. “I look forward to continue building on the great work the whole Magna team is doing to participate in our clients’ success and growth.”

UM MENAT appoints new CEO

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MCN MEDIABRANDS has appointed Joe Nicolas to the role of CEO of UM MENAT. With over nine years of experience within the agency, Joe previously held the role of Regional Head of Research and most recently held the role of Head of Strategy. In his new role, Joe will lead the agency by driving growth, building teams, developing and contributing to the success of clients’ brands.

“Having gone through a series of transformative moves during the last year, our next challenge is to build on a strong momentum and a determination to continue the mandate of change,” says Joe. “I’m excited to continue being part of an incredible team and working closely with all of our clients to unlock the potential of this region.”

Active DMC makes new promotions

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Dubai-based agency, Active (Digital. Marketing. Communications) has promoted Lauren Brush and Stanislava Burianek to the role of Associate Account Directors. With a combined ten years of experience in public relations and communications, Lauren and Stanislava, and with four years within the agency, most recently held the role of Senior Communications Consultants. In their new roles, Lauren will lead a portfolio of healthcare, technology and industry clients and focus on expanding the healthcare division in the agency while Stanislava will handle all banking and finance clients while providing quality marketing and PR services.

“Lauren and Stanislava are ready for their extended leadership roles that include driving agency business growth and servicing clients’ diverse communication needs across Middle East,” says Sawsan Ghanem, Managing Partner, Active DMC. “I believe the road to successful growth and expansion is to focus on nurturing the talent from within and supporting leadership opportunities. Lauren and Stanislava possess a strong can-do attitude and complement each other. We look forward to seeing them assume their new senior roles and achieve further great results for our clients, partners, team and agency.”

MEPRA appoints new Chair and Vice-Chair 

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The Middle East Public Relations Association (MEPRA) has appointed Jonty Summers to the role of Chair and Lisa Welsh to the role of Vice-Chair of the Executive Board from 2019 to 2021. Jonty Summers works with Hanover Middle East where he holds the role of Managing Director while Lisa Welsh works with Hill+Knowlton Strategies MENA where she holds the role of Managing Director. Jonty has served on the MEPRA Executive Board for a year while spearheading MEPRA’s partnership with PR Week UK and participating in the planning and execution of the MEPRA Awards. Lisa has served on the MEPRA Executive Board for a year where she led the planning and implementation of MEPRA’s inaugural REMAP Festival.

“I’m looking forward to continuing to build on MEPRA’s strong foundations as a champion of excellence in public relations,” says Jonty. “MEPRA’s work is shaped by the dynamics, creativity and energy that characterise the region. Signature events like last month’s REMAP creativity conference, the Majlis and the Awards, as well as partnerships with international bodies like CIPR, reflect this mission as we look to encourage ever greater levels of professionalism in the industry.”

“MEPRA is transforming the communications industry as we know it, driving creativity, excellence and development across the region,” says Lisa. “I am honoured to take on the Vice Chair role, and thank both Ray and Deema for their exceptional work to date, along with the executive and strategy board. We look forward to announcing next year’s strategy in January, and taking MEPRA to the next level.”

Ogilvy appoints new Global CCO

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Ogilvy has appointed Piyush Pandey to the role of Global Chief Creative Officer. With a wealth of experience, Piyush most recently held the role of Executive Chairman and Creative Director at Ogilvy South Asia. In his new role, he will lead creative work assignments and oversee all projects while taking on new duties at the worldwide creative level.

“We could not be more thrilled that Piyush will be serving as our chief creative officer, worldwide and my creative partner,” says John Seifert, CEO, Ogilvy Worldwide. “Piyush is a true industry icon who is uniquely suited to lead our global creative efforts. Creativity has and will always be at the heart of the Ogilvy brand and culture. He is the perfect leader to shepherd that legacy as we continue to focus on making brands matter as the leading creative network in the world.”

Initiative MENA appoints new Regional MD

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Global media agency, Initiative MENA has appointed Lee Boden to the role of Regional Managing Director. With over 17 years of experience in media and advertising, Lee previously worked with MediaCom Singapore where he held the role of Regional Director and most recently worked with Kudos Content. In his new role, Lee will develop media strategies and improve client business outcomes in the agency.

“Initiative has undertaken a successful internal transformation over the past two years led by our Global CEO, Mat Baxter,” says Lee. “It’s now time to bring the power and benefit of that transformation to our clients here in the MENA region. As always, we remain absolutely committed to finding new ways to unlock immediate value and competitive advantage for our clients.”

APO Group appoints new CEO

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Media relations consultancy for the MENA region, APO Group has appointed Lionel Reina to the role of CEO. With over 25 years of senior management experience, Lionel previously worked with the French telecoms company Orange where he held the role of Vice President and General Manager for Eastern Europe and most recently as the Middle East Director in the Gulf region for Accenture. In his new role, he will assume operational responsibility for all aspects of the business and look to grow its portfolio of clients and continue its International expansion and digital transformation.

“I’ve been following the progress of APO Group for years and been hugely impressed by their approach to innovation and willingness to stay ahead of the competition,” says Lionel. “I want to ensure we keep our strong customer focus and build on our reputation as a global consultancy with unique experience and relationships across the media landscape.”

Mad Diameter makes new appointment 

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Dubai-based advertising agency, Mad Diameter has appointed Amr Moustafa to the role of Marketing Communications Director. With over eight years of experience in the advertising and marketing communications industry, Amr most recently handled digital activities, operations and client services while monitoring the progress of projects. In his new role, he will plan the communication strategy for the agency and lead the client servicing team along with the creative and operation team to release successful advertising campaigns and executions.

Facebook appoints new Managing Director 

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Facebook has appointed Ramez T. Shehadi to the role of Managing Director in the MENA region. With a wealth of experience in the digital business and technology industry, Ramez most recently worked with Booz Allen Hamilton where he held the role of Senior Partner and Managing Director. In his new role, Ramez will lead the commercial growth and impact of Facebook and its portfolio of apps, services and businesses across the region.

“Digital transformation is well underway across the region, driven by demand for secure, fast and personalised online experiences throughout social communities and public and private sectors,” says Ramez. “I am excited to join the Facebook team at such a time and look forward to helping shape and drive the strategy in MENA, ensuring that the market remains prioritised and a source of information globally.”

BBC News appoints Middle East Business Reporter

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BBC News has appointed Paul Blake to the role of Middle East Business Reporter. With over seven years of experience in journalism, Paul has covered business stories across the East Coast of the USA including the power scandal in Puerto Rico and Trump’s trade wars with China. In his new role, Paul will broadcast live from the Dubai Business Bureau, as well as filming coverage for BBC World News programmes, bring major business stories from the region to the attention of the UK audience.

“This is an incredibly exciting time to be in this region,” says Paul. “Huge investments are being made, and world-class events staged. I’m thrilled to be covering business and economics in the Middle East for BBC News, and I’m looking forward bringing our global audiences the stories that matter from the region.”