MAM
Ramakrishnan Hariharan joins Publicis India as creative head
MUMBAI: Publicis India has strengthened its creative function with the appointment of Ramakrishnan Hariharan as the head of creative. Ram, as he is fondly known by his peers, will be based out of Mumbai and will report to Publicis India MD and CCO – South Asia Bobby Pawar.
As the creative head of Mumbai, Ram will manage and lend his creative know-how on some notable brands of the agency including Zee, Lakme, HDFC MF, Skoda, Citibank, etc. He will work closely with the teams and the leadership and assist in carving out a unique creative identity for the brands that he will manage.
Commenting on the appointment, Bobby Pawar says, “Creatively, the Mumbai office has been on a roll for a while, with great work on Ambuja Cement, Nerolac, HDFC Mutual Funds, Skoda, Zee and more. Ram comes to bat at the right time. He is not just a great creative guy who is adept at traditional and non-traditional ideas, he is also the kind of leader people rally behind. I am sure he will help us raise our game a few notches.”
Ram joins Publicis from Ogilvy India where he was the senior creative director.
A creative veteran with an enviable experience spanning more than 18 years, Ram has been associated with some key brands across multiple agencies in India. His most notable works include launch of Savlon antiseptic range and JSW Cement, campaigns for Amazon devices including Kindle and FireTV Stick, Taj Mahal Tea, etc. Prior to Ogilvy, Ram has also been associated with Lowe Lintas, Everest Brand Solutions, Leo Burnett, Vyas Gianetti Creative etc.
Welcoming Ram on board, Publicis India managing director Srija Chatterjee adds, “Ram has been the face behind some memorable campaigns in the recent past, and it will be great to see him bring that creative spark across most of our work at Publicis. We are certain that under his leadership, the teams will imbibe a great creative culture and churn out an enviable body of work that will end up winning multiple laurels. We welcome him to the agency and look forward to seeing some great work from him soon.”
Sharing his views on joining the agency, Ram said says, “Publicis has done some outstanding work in the past and is truly geared for more success. Bobby is like a mentor to me, and I am fortunate to work closely with him in shaping up the creative culture here. We have clients who believe in us and a robust brand-planning and account-management team driving those businesses. What more can a creative person ask for.”
Ram is no stranger to awards and many of his works have gone on to win top honours across prominent award shows. He has been the recipient of many awards across festivals like Abby Awards, Clio Awards, Cannes Lions, Adfest, Goafest, Kyoorius Awards, Effie India, D&AD, One Show, Spikes Asia etc.
AD Agencies
Omnicom Advertising Asia assembles new regional leadership team
The group is betting that a blend of creative talent, cultural intelligence and AI-driven data can help brands stay relevant in the world’s most complex marketing region.
Asia has long been the market that humbles the overconfident. Omnicom Advertising Asia is determined not to be among them.
The group announced on Monday the formation of a new regional leadership team of six senior executives, reporting to Sean Donovan, president of OA Asia. The structure is designed to help brands navigate a fragmented, fast-moving consumer landscape and build what Donovan calls “long-term cultural relevance” — the kind that survives a news cycle, a platform shift and an algorithm update.
The team
The six appointments span creativity, innovation, strategy, intelligence, business development and marketing, covering the full arc from brand idea to commercial outcome.
Peter Khoury takes on the role of chief creative officer for OA Asia, Melissa Daniels becomes chief innovation officer, and Emmanuel Sabbagh steps up as chief strategy officer. All three take on expanded regional responsibilities while retaining their leadership positions at TBWA\Singapore.
Andreas Krasser broadens his remit to chief client partner for OA Asia, continuing simultaneously as chief executive of OA Hong Kong. Ellie Brocklehurst joins as chief growth and marketing officer, drawing on her previous stint as chief marketing officer for Asia at TBWA. Rounding out the team is S. Subramanyeswar, known in the industry as Subbu, who was appointed chief knowledge officer for OA Asia alongside his role as chief strategy officer of OA India, a position that followed the close of Omnicom’s acquisition of IPG.The pitch
The team will work in close collaboration with leadership across TBWA, McCann and BBDO throughout the OA Asia network, with a brief to cut through the noise of today’s consumer landscape and deliver creative solutions that, in the group’s framing, prove short-term performance while building long-term brand health.
Underpinning the new structure is OMNI, Omnicom’s AI-driven marketing intelligence platform. The platform draws cultural intelligence from across the group’s agency brands, with the stated aim of ensuring that data is not merely accurate but grounded in context — reflecting how people actually think, feel and behave, rather than how a spreadsheet might prefer them to.
Donovan frames the proposition in straightforward terms. “Asia is one of the most complex regions for marketers, but the opportunity here is immense,” he says. “We’ve built a team that simplifies the landscape, combining top talent with an Asia-first, future-focused mindset, and unprecedented access to resources.” The model, he adds, is designed to be plug-and-play, responding to client needs in collaboration with agencies and markets across the region. “More than expertise, it’s about giving clients the perspective, ambition and access to think beyond the next campaign.”
The new structure also strengthens connections across the broader Omnicom family, including its media, production and PR operations — a post-acquisition suite of capabilities that the group is evidently keen to deploy as a single, coherent offering.
In a region where consumer attention is fractured across dozens of platforms, languages and cultures, the real test will not be the org chart. It will be whether six smart people with the right tools can actually make brands matter. Omnicom is putting its money on yes.
