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Publicis Media ME makes new leadership appointments

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Following the launch of Publicis Media in the Middle East, Alex Saber, Chairman of Publicis Media Middle East and Steve Parker, CEO of Publicis Media Middle East, have made some key leadership appointments. Alain Brahamcha, former Client Managing Director at Starcom, has been appointed the new CEO of Mediavest|Spark, Middle East, where he will continue to work on building strong strategic client partnerships, developing talent as well as introducing and accelerating digital innovation. Former Managing Director of Digital at Starcom Mediavest Group, Ali Nehme will now take on the role of Chief Strategy Officer at Publicis Media, Middle East. In this role, Ali will work closely with the Publicis Media leadership group on designing and operationalising the vision of the company. Tarek Daouk, previously Managing Director at Mediavest, has now been appointed to the role of CEO of Starcom, Middle East and Firas El Zein will continue in his role as CEO for Zenith, Middle East.”We have been on a continuous journey of transformation and have built on our talent, which we believe to be the foundation of our business,” says Alex Saber, Chairman of Publicis Media, Middle East. “Together, with our world class practices, we will help our clients, people and business grow and create another chapter of pushing the boundaries in the media agency landscape.”

Publicis Media appoints new leadership in the Levant

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Publicis Media, part of Publicis Groupe, has made key leadership appointments for operations in the Levant market. Wilson Issa, who has been leading the Groupe in the region since 2007, has been named Executive Vice President of Publicis Media Levant. Joyce Hallak, who has 15 years of experience in media across a number of markets, will take on the role of General Manager, Starcom Levant and Head of Business Transformation, Publicis Media Levant. Paul Seif has now taken on the role of General Manager at Mediavest | Spark Levant, where he will lead the team on business wins and leverage the agency’s capabilities, scale, partnerships and talent.

“Our Groupe has always recognised the immense potential in our talent and their exceptional leadership capabilities and for that reason they have always been the true leaders of our transformation,” says Alex Saber, Chairman, Publicis Media Middle East. “These leaders will drive new levels of scale, business transformation and client value and I look forward to working closely with them along our exciting new journey.”

Publicis makes changes to structure and leadership

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Publicis Groupe has reorganised its media capabilities globally into Publicis Media, as part of efforts to increase growth and provide value to clients. The organisation has made a number of structural and leadership changes in order to do this; primarily consolidating its six global agency brands: Starcom, Mediavest, Spark, Zenith Optimedia and Blue 449, into four global agency brands: Starcom, Zenith, Mediavest|Spark and Optimedia|Blue 449. Each agency will be lead by a Global Brand President who will be responsible for leading clients, driving growth and enabling best work, with Lisa Donohue as Global Brand President for Starcom, Vittorio Bonori as Global Brand President for Zenith, Brian Terkelsend as Global Brand President for Mediavest|Spark and Andras Vigh as Global Brand President for Optimedia|Blue 449.

Publicis Media’s new structure will cover top 20 markets, led by Tim Jones, Regional CEO for the Americas. Iain Jacob will be Regional CEO for EMEA and Gerry Boyle will now be Regional CEO for APAC. There will also be four US CEO’s who will report to Tim Jones; Chris Boothe for Mediavest|Spark, Dave Ehlers for Optimedia|Blue 449, Lou Rossie at Zenith and Lisa Donohue continuing as CEO at Starcom.

“We are driven to get to the future first,” says Steve King, CEO, Publicis Media. “Publicis Media is a fresh opportunity to simplify our organisation, invent more modern approaches to gain efficiency, introduce structures for greater collaboration and effectiveness as well as drive new levels of scale and client value.”

Maurice Lévy, Chairman and CEO, Publicis Groupe, adds “The new Publicis Media imagined by Steve King is fully equipped to fit the future and best serve our clients. A leaner and simpler structure will bring more value to our clients and further accelerate our growth.”

SMG launches SPORTS at SMG

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Following launches in the US, Russia and Africa, Starcom Mediavest Group (SMG) is rolling out its sports marketing capability, SPORTS at SMG, in the MENA region. SPORTS at SMG will be headquartered in Dubai and offer fully integrated sports marketing capabilities for brands. Leveraging SMG’s market position, the division’s capabilities will include audience insights, strategic development, investment, management and evaluation.

“In an increasingly fragmented landscape, sports is still the number one driver of audiences in big numbers across multiple platforms, devices and multiple markets,” says Robin Clarke, Managing Director, EMEA, SPORTS at SMG. “New technologies are enabling rights holders and sports media vendors alike to evolve their offering to brands significantly. Helping our clients understand and invest in optimal ways in those spaces can deliver far greater effectiveness in investment and ROI. This is a key strength of our company.”

Raed Kablawi, Head of MENA, SPORTS at SMG, adds “SPORTS at SMG in the MENA region will ensure our clients understand the landscape, the opportunities and the routes to high value ROI from investing in sports at local, regional and global levels. As part of a world class media network, we are armed with the best supporting capabilities in digital, content, social, data and media planning/buying to do just that.”

SMG Beirut ranked in Directory Big Won Rankings

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Starcom Mediavest Group (SMG) Beirut has ranked the third media agency globally in the 2015 Directory Big Won Rankings. The Directory Big Won is one of the most extensive awards ranking reports in the world, compiled from 7,194 awards, 3,406 pieces of work by 1,443 agencies and it has been tracking media networks since 2003.

“This ranking is an aggregate of our company’s stellar performance at awards shows in 2015, and a further testament to the creative talent we have in Beirut and in the region,” says Wilson Issa, Managing Director, SMG Beirut. “This accolade is driven not only by our people, but also by our clients, who continue to support our drive to innovate and transform their businesses.”