MAM
ADFEST 2016 confirms 57 jurors from 18 cities
MUMBAI: ADFEST has announced that some of the world’s most celebrated creative professionals will be joining ADFEST 2016 as jurors including 57 professionals from 18 cities: Auckland, Bangkok, Beijing, Beirut, Colombo, Dubai, Hong Kong, Jakarta, Kuala Lumpur, Manila, Melbourne, Mumbai, Seoul, Shanghai, Singapore, Sydney, Taipei and Tokyo.
Introducing the jury panel for Film & Radio Lotus:
• Ben Welsh, Creative Chairman, Asia, M&C Saatchi, Sydney (Jury President)
• Erick Rosa, Executive Creative Director, MullenLowe Singapore, Singapore
• Jennifer Hu, Chief Creative officer, Ogilvy & Mather Taiwan, Taipei
• Joo Yu Kyung, Creative Director, Innocean Worldwide, Seoul
• Malek Ghorayeb, Regional Executive Creative Director, Leo Burnett MENA, Beirut
• Santi Suwanvalaikorn, Founder & Executive Creative Director, Youngsanti, Bangkok
• Yoshimitsu Sawamoto, Executive Creative Director, Dentsu Inc., Tokyo
The jury panel for Design Lotus & Print Craft Lotus:
• Yoshihiro Yagi, Creative Director, Dentsu Inc., Tokyo (Jury President)
• Chutivat Cherdchoo, Executive Creative Director, Visionary Group, Bangkok
• Guy Venables, Founder, GUY>ENABLES, Sydney
• Ivan Hadywibowo, Chief Creative Officer, J. Walter Thompson, Jakarta
• Sanket Pathare, Senior Creative Director, McCann Erickson India, Mumbai
• Sing Lin, Creative Director & Partner, BeWater, Shanghai
• Trevor Kennedy, Chief Creative Officer, Leo Burnett Solutions GROUP, Colombo
The jury panel for Media Lotus, Branded Entertainment Lotus & Content Lotus:
• Josy Paul, Chairman & Chief Creative Officer, BBDO India, Mumbai (Jury President)
• Darren Watson, Executive Creative Director – APAC, FITCH, Singapore
• Evan Teng, Managing Director, J. Walter Thompson Taiwan, Taipei
• Georg Warga, Creative Director, Filmmaker & Founder, GOODSTEIN, Shanghai
• Patrick Baron, Executive Creative Director, McCann Melbourne, Melbourne
• Sarnchatt Chansrakao, Managing Director, Dentsu Media Thailand, Bangkok
• Sokichi Nakazawa, Executive Manager of Data Driven Media Marketing Center, Hakuhodo DY Media Partners Inc., Tokyo
The jury panel for Promo Lotus and Effective Lotus:
• Chris Chiu, Singapore (Jury President)
• Anu Joseph, Executive Creative Director, Creativeland Asia Pvt. Ltd., Mumbai
• Dani Richa, Chairman & Chief Executive Officer, BBDO MENA, Pakistan & Africa, Dubai
• Eric Cruz, Executive Creative Director, AKQA Shanghai, Shanghai
• Jeff Ma, Marketing Vice President, Greater China, The Woolmark Company, Shanghai
• Joyce Deng, Marketing Vice President, Yintai Yushen Business Management Co., Ltd., Beijing
• Tara Ford, Creative Director, WhybinTBWA Group, Melbourne
The jury panel for Integrated Lotus, INNOVA Lotus and Lotus Roots:
• Jeremy Craigen, Global Chief Creative Officer, Innocean Worldwide, Seoul ( Jury President)
• Ben Welsh, Creative Chairman, Asia, M&C Saatchi, Sydney
• Chee Keong (CK) Tan, Group Executive Creative Director, Ogilvy & Mather Malaysia, Kuala Lumpur
• Chris Chiu, Singapore
• Josy Paul, Chairman & Chief Creative Officer, BBDO India, Mumbai
• Richard Yu, Chief Creative Officer & China Network Creative Consultant, ADK Taiwan, Taipei
• Sihabutr Xoomsai, Film Director, Triton Film, Bangkok
• Valerie Cheng, Head of Creative Shop, Southeast Asia, Facebook, Singapore
• Yoshihiro Yagi, Creative Director, Dentsu Inc., Tokyo
“Our jurors arrived in Thailand yesterday to begin debating this year’s entries. It is now their responsibility to choose the work that is driving our industry forward, we’d like to thank them for the hard work they will perform over the next few days,” says ADFEST president Jimmy Lam.
ADFEST 2016 will run from 16th to 19th March at the Royal Cliff Hotels Group in Pattaya, Thailand.
MAM
Beacon Group appoints Dr Rajesh Patel as Group CEO
36-year healthcare veteran to lead Beacon Diagnostics, Vector Biotek, Biogeny.
MUMBAI: A new chief, a fresh diagnosis and a sharper prescription for growth. Beacon Group has appointed Dr Rajesh Patel as its Group Chief Executive Officer, effective April 1, 2026, signalling a decisive push to scale its presence in the diagnostics and IVD space. Patel steps into the role with 36 years of experience across the healthcare and diagnostics industry, bringing a career shaped by leadership roles spanning sales, marketing, business development and operational strategy. His mandate is both expansive and precise: to steer the group’s overall strategic direction while tightening coordination across its three core entities Beacon Diagnostics, Vector Biotek and Biogeny Diagnostics.
In practical terms, that means driving cross-company synergies, accelerating market expansion and strengthening organisational capability areas increasingly critical as diagnostic players compete for scale in a fragmented yet rapidly evolving healthcare ecosystem. The group is positioning itself to capture unmet demand across chain laboratories, key accounts and standalone labs, segments that remain underserved despite growing diagnostic needs.
The appointment comes at a time when the In Vitro Diagnostics (IVD) sector in India is entering a more competitive and innovation-led phase, with companies focusing not just on product pipelines but also on service delivery, integration and customer-centric models. Beacon’s leadership appears to be betting that Patel’s execution-focused approach can help translate ambition into operational momentum.
Welcoming the appointment, Chairman Dr D K Joshi described Patel’s induction as a strategic move aligned with the group’s long-term vision, emphasising the role of leadership depth in navigating the next phase of growth.
For Beacon Group, the message is clear, in a sector where precision matters, leadership is the new differentiator—and this appointment is intended to set the tone for what comes next.
