MAM
John Muszynski is the new CEO for Starcom US
MUMBAI: Starcom MediaVest Group (SMG) CEO Renetta McCann announced the appointment of John Muszynski as Starcom USA CEO with immediate effect. Until recently the position was held by McCann himself.
According to McCann, “John is someone who is constantly looking ahead to meet the opportunities and challenges of the future. He has the tenacity and the authority to embrace change, and was the clear choice to lead one of the most innovative and admired agencies in the media business.”
An organisational veteran, Muszynski started with the company in 1981 right out of university. Until 1990, Muszynski worked within the planning or strategy discipline before joining the agency’s broadcast investment group (BIG) where in 1999 he held the position of chief broadcast investment officer.
During his tenure as Starcom’s top investment expert, he helped SMG launch the broadband upfront market. He was a founding member of Starcom’s Video Investment Group (VIG), a team of media-neutral experts who explore the full spectrum of visual options when mapping out client plans. In April 2004, Muszynski was appointed Starcom’s managing director, investment and operations and was reporting to McCann.
“Anyone that knows me knows that I thrive on competition. With Starcom already one of the undisputed leaders in our industry, the competition hasn’t lessened. In fact, the competition has only increased because we are competing to outdo ourselves. On my watch, Starcom will continue to embrace change and the policies that made it successful, while remaining an incubator of industry-shaping ideas and the home for people that make that type of thinking happen,” said Muszynski.
Rounding out the Starcom USA management team is Steven Feuling, chief marketing officer as well as group client leaders Chris Boothe, Kathy Ring, Andrew Swinand and Elizabeth Herbst-Brady. Herbst-Brady joined the company in September 2004 from NBC Universal as Muszynski’s successor leading Starcom’s BIG.
A noted leader in the media industry, Muszynski has won numerous industry honors including AdAge’s Media Maven, TVWeek’s Buyer of the Year, Mediaweek All-Star, and a Kidscreen Golden Marble Award for Best Media Director, as well as client accolades. Most recently, he helped Starcom win the Best Buy Bravo Award for its business partner delivering the highest level of quality performance.
MAM
India wins big at the 2025 Global Best of the Best Effie Awards
The Womb and McCann India take home Global Grand Effies, putting Indian advertising on the world map
MUMBAI: Indian advertising just had its moment. At the 2025 Global Best of the Best Effie Awards, the most rigorous test of marketing effectiveness on the planet, two Indian agencies beat out campaigns from over 130 markets to claim Global Grand Effies, the sport’s equivalent of a world championship medal.
The Womb won for Piramal Finance with a campaign called “NEEYAT: India’s Real Credit Score,” a purpose-led push that took direct aim at systemic bias in the credit sector and reframed how creditworthiness is measured. McCann India won for ESAF Small Finance Bank with “Saving Her Savings,” a campaign centred on financial inclusion for marginalised women. Both wins came from a shortlist of 47 contenders, all of whom had already won gold or grand prizes in their home markets. Only 11 Global Grand Effies were handed out across seven markets. India got two.
The highest honour of the night, the Iridium Effie, awarded to the single most effective marketing campaign in the world, went to eos Products and Mischief @ No Fixed Address for “Women’s Shave.” Remarkably, it was their second consecutive year taking the top prize.
Other global winners included Oreo and Mondelez International for “Oreo Codes” in commerce and shopper marketing, Flamin’ Hot and PepsiCo for “Poker Face” in experiential marketing, and ALDI Australia for “Shop ALDI First” in retail.
The Best of the Best is no ordinary awards show. Entry is restricted to campaigns that have already won a gold or grand Effie at a national level, making it, in effect, a champions’ league of marketing effectiveness. Indian agencies are no longer just brilliant at cracking local markets. They are now setting the global standard.
The world’s best advertisers had better start paying attention.
