MAM
Sungkyoon Kim takes charge as president and chief executive of Cheil SWA
Data and AI veteran to steer 1,000-strong team as agency doubles down on tech-led marketing
GURGAON: Cheil South West Asia has named Sungkyoon Kim as president and chief executive of the Cheil SWA group, handing the reins to a data-and-digital heavyweight as advertising hurtles into its AI age.
Based at the agency’s Gurgaon headquarters, Kim will lead a 1,000-strong talent pool across Delhi, Mumbai, Bangalore, Chennai and Kolkata, spanning creative, data, technology, retail, media and experiential.
Kim brings more than 30 years’ experience in marketing strategy, data and analytics, and consumer psychology. He joins after serving as head of digital platform business, overseeing Samsung.com, and leading the DnA (data and analytics) center at Cheil, where he drove CRM and data initiatives.
His track record leans heavily on data-led transformation. He has led programmes to strengthen CRM, media, marketing and AI capabilities, including the design and deployment of a real-time digital media optimisation platform that integrated cross-channel spend and performance data to sharpen investment efficiency and ROI. He also pushed the development and rollout of LLM-powered AI agents for real-time analysis and automated insight generation.
An Adobe Experience Platform expert, Kim has spearheaded marketing automation projects that unified customer data and enabled real-time, personalised cross-channel campaigns. He also played a key role in setting up Cheil’s global data center in India, boosting offshore R&D and global operational efficiency.
“The advertising landscape is at a pivotal shift,” Kim said. “As AI continues to redefine marketing, our future success sits at the intersection of human psychology and data-driven technology. My goal is to drive an AI-led transformation that goes beyond the surface, embedding innovation into the very fabric of our business functions. Alongside our incredible talent, I look forward to delivering dynamic, high-impact marketing solutions our clients expect in this new era.”
With data as fuel and AI as engine, Cheil SWA is betting its next chapter will be written in algorithms as much as ideas. Kim is now firmly in the driver’s seat.
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MAM
WPP appoints Estée Lauder’s Anne-Isabelle Choueiri as chief transformation officer
Former Estée Lauder executive to lead operations, technology and culture overhaul under WPP’s three-year growth plan
LONDON: WPP has appointed Anne-Isabelle Choueiri as chief transformation officer in a newly created role tasked with delivering the group’s Elevate28 strategy.
Choueiri joins from The Estée Lauder Companies, where she led enterprise-wide strategic initiatives, including the “One ELC” operating model and major upgrades to enterprise marketing, data and analytics capabilities. She also led the redesign of enterprise technology teams and served on the company’s AI taskforce, driving AI strategy, adoption and value realisation across the business.
At WPP, she will be responsible for designing, implementing and embedding the operating model behind Elevate28, the company’s three-year growth plan unveiled in February 2026. She will lead efforts to improve innovation, efficiency and integration across WPP’s client offerings, with a focus on delivering agile, outcome-driven solutions and measurable growth.
Choueiri will oversee organisational transformation across the group, working closely with product and enterprise technology teams to deploy AI, data and technology to build new capabilities and improve operational performance. She will also work with the people function to embed cultural change, strengthen an agile performance mindset and support talent development across the organisation.
Before joining Estée Lauder, she held senior roles across consulting and digital agencies, including at Accenture, Masaï (a Bain & Company spin-off), and Kearney, with experience spanning strategy, data and digital marketing transformation.
Cindy Rose, chief executive officer of WPP, said Choueiri brings a strong track record of leading large-scale transformation across operations, technology and culture, adding that her appointment will help accelerate the group’s next phase of growth under Elevate28.
Choueiri said WPP’s strategy represents an ambitious opportunity to reshape how the company operates and delivers for clients, adding that she looks forward to building integrated solutions and fostering a culture of innovation and change.
She will be based in New York and will join WPP’s executive committee.
