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BPG Group makes new appointments

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Following BPG Group’s creation of a new leadership structure across the region, the group has made major appointments in its digital and social media, as well as advertising and public relations division.

In the leadership role, Nitin Puri, previously Chief Executive Officer at BPG Bates, will now assume the role of Chief Operating Officer at BPG Group, where he will oversee the growth of the agency’s regional capabilities and work along side Strategy Director, Kevin Jones and Business Director, Chad Hussain to oversee a group-wide strategy team and manage new business functions.

The agency’s major divisions have also gone through structural changes with the advertising and creative division seeing Suneesh Menon, previously General Manager at BPG Group, appointed to the role of Managing Director BPG Bates, where he will ensure a highly relevant and stimulating offer is delivered. The public relations businesses division will see Kevin Hasler, previously General Manager at ZEENAH PR taking on the role of Managing Director at BPG Cohn & Wolfe, where he will focus on a greater digital offer and further develop as well as grow corporate communications and consultancy strength across the region. The digital and social media division will see Hammed Yousuf previously Senior Manager, Digital at BPG Maxus move to Account Director, Digital at BPG Cohn & Wolfe, where he will lead the agency’s social media to a more integrated and developed social media offer.

“The changes we have made will ensure that the BPG Group can become more nimble than ever in the way we focus our energy, creativity and passion to deliver solutions for our clients while helping us become an even more contemporary company for the future,” says Avi Bhojani, CEO, BPG Group.

St. Regis Abu Dhabi appoints new PR Manager

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St. Regis Abu Dhabi has appointed Annie Turnell to the role of PR and Communications Manager. Previously PR Manager for Four Seasons Hotel Abu Dhabi, Annie will now be responsible for St. Regis’ PR, marketing and digital communication strategies.

“We are thrilled to have Annie join The St. Regis Abu Dhabi,” says Katie Malone, Director of Marketing, St. Regis Abu Dhabi. “We are very confident that her previous experience and extensive communication network and capabilities will be hugely beneficial to the hotel.”

The Entertainer wins App of the Year Award

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The Entertainer has been named App of the Year at the first Shortlist Mobile App Awards on November 6, 2016 at the Jumeirah Zabeel Saray. The event saw The Entertainer along with 18 of UAE’s best mobile apps including, Etihad, Emirates NBD and Hype Ten being awarded for the technological advancement and innovation of their apps across the UAE.

“When I printed the first Entertainer book in 2002, I couldn’t have imagined the technological advancements on the horizon,” says Donna Benton, Founder and Chairman, The Entertainer. “The development of the app launched the brand into the digital and social age, which has been invaluable to both our customers and merchant partners. Thank you to Shortlist for the recognition.”

Five Minute Focus – PRCA Awards

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With the launch of the PRCA MENA Awards coming up, TMN sat down with Loretta Ahmed, Chairperson PRCA MENA, to find out more about what to expect from the upcoming event…

When is the launch of the PRCA MENA Awards and where will it be held?

The PRCA MENA Awards will open for entries from November 7, 2016 – December 13, 2016. The Awards will be held at the H Hotel, Dubai on February 8, 2017.

Tell us the concept behind the awards…

We wanted to have an awards night with a difference, to recognise the good work that PR and communications professionals are doing in the region. We also wanted to mark our first year in the region by looking for creative strategies that achieve results and recognising the talent here to ensure the region is profiled globally for the world-class campaigns undertaken here.

What makes an award event such as the PRCA MENA Awards different from other regional PR awards?

We have a totally different concept and variety of awards which will be judged by an international judging panel.  The night itself is a fresh take on awards and we’ve done away with a long sit-down meal in favour of an event that encourages networking.

Can you give us some details about the nomination process?

To enter is easy, it’s all online. Submissions are the standard 1000 word entry, but we are looking for creative strategies, execution and most importantly results.

How can non-members participate in the awards?

We have a rate for members and non-members. We encourage all PR and communications professionals to take part.

Can you tell us more about the awards/categories themselves?

There will be twelve categories. Eight campaign awards and four awards focused on teams and individuals. The award categories will include, Rising Star of the Year, Results on a Budget, Best Integrated Campaign of the Year and Best Regional Campaign of the Year.

Who judges the entries for the PRCA MENA Awards?

The Judges will be announced next month. Our panel will be an international judging panel with experience in the region. Some will be based here and others will be from our other key global PR markets.  This is key for us as we are a global organisation committed to raising the profile of the MENA PR industry across the world.

What has been your advertising strategy for the UAE/Middle East?

We don’t have a traditional advertising campaign for PRCA MENA and we rely heavily on our networking events programme and word of mouth.

Did you face any challenges establishing the event in the Middle East?

We have had a great response so far and we are seeing participants very focused on budgets and resources. For this reason we’ve kept our entry fees low and the entry process as simple as possible.

How do you think the PRCA MENA Awards will develop in the future?

PRCA MENA Awards will develop by being held in different parts of the region, and attract PR and communications professionals from different areas to nominate their work for the awards. The UAE is a key regional hub but there is exceptional work undertaken right across the region and we see no reason why the UAE should always be the host country.  We will have new innovative categories and dedicated specialist awards in the future.

Nominees announced for MEPRA Awards

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The Middle East Public Relations Association (MEPRA) Awards 2016 shortlist has been announced. The awards have been divided into 17 categories – including Best Integrated Campaign, Best Use of Social Media and newly added category for in-house professionals, Outstanding Young Communicator – each award is designed to recognise exceptional returns on investments, creativity and strategic impact by agencies, corporates, teams and individuals. Shortlisted companies include: Four Communications, Hill+Knowlton Strategies, Edelman, Mubadala, Seven Media and Weber Shandwick MENA. The winners will be announced at the award ceremony on November 23, 2016 at the JW Marriott Marquis, decided by a panel of renowned industry judges.

“Judging this year was even more challenging than ever,” says Jamal Al Mawed, Head of Corporate Communications, Rolls-Royce Motor Cars. “The industry has advanced in terms of its use of data analytics to measure the performance of campaigns. This means we had greater access to real figures than ever before making the judging process more about the cold hard results, than about the creativity of the idea. We are delighted at the progress made and we see a very strong future for the communications industry across the region.”

ITP launches new division

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ITP Publishing Group has launched its new digital division, ITP Live. The new division is set to extend the digital footprint of ITP and APP Media Groups’ brands across the region. The new division aims to provide new content creation opportunities for commercial partners and will focus on the region’s social influencer agencies, video content creation and digital sales representation as well as ecommerce and live events.

“ITP Live is an exciting new addition to the company,” says Ali Akawi, Managing Director, ITP Publishing Group. “It will work horizontally to maximise opportunities across our brands and vertically by creating its own unique products. One of the horizontal aspects is video and as one of the most prolific content creators in the region we believe that creating video content is a natural extension of our business.”