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Wavemaker bolsters leadership team with two new appointments
Mumbai: Wavemaker has announced the appointment of Shipra Roy as its new global chief people, inclusion and culture officer and Helen Price as global chief investment officer. Both will be based in London and join CEO Toby Jenner’s global leadership team, said the company.
Roy joins Wavemaker from a position as chief talent officer with McCann UK and Europe where her main responsibilities included setting the people strategy and working on key initiatives with a focus on DE&I, leadership development and succession planning. Previously, she worked at VMLY&R where she co-led the talent function globally with responsibility for EMEA, APAC, and key WPP global clients. In her new role, she will oversee all aspects of the people function in the organisation. She replaces James Edgar who left the agency in August.
Price joins Wavemaker from IPG Mediabrands where she was head of global accountability and investment. She has over 20 years of experience in the media industry with a focus on media trading and investment and has a strong track record in building and developing innovative media value solutions which balance client savings and commercial opportunities. At Wavemaker, her focus will be on creating value for clients and commercial opportunities for the agency. She replaces Keith Tiley who will be retiring at the end of the year.
In addition, Wavemaker has promoted global managing partner Simon Broderick to global head of investment.
“Even in the face of a global pandemic, Wavemaker has had an incredibly strong year and, as our growth journey continues, I’m pleased to welcome Helen and Shipra to the team,” said Toby Jenner. “They are both tremendous resources in their fields, and I look forward to working closely with them to help us deliver positively provoking, innovative, and commercially sound solutions for both our clients and our people.”
MAM
Ad:tech honours 2026: Full list of winners announced
Expanded awards spotlight winners across 22 categories as industry doubles down on intelligent automation
NEW DELHI: Marketing’s tech elite took the spotlight as the ad:tech honours 2026 returned with a sharper focus on AI, data and immersive media, signalling how deeply technology now underpins brand strategy. Held at Yashobhoomi on March 17, the second edition drew industry leaders to celebrate innovation that is reshaping engagement and performance.
Presented with the International Advertising Association India chapter and new partner Huella, the awards expanded from 8 to 22 categories, tracking the rapid convergence of creativity, automation and analytics.
The winners’ list reads like a snapshot of marketing’s future. In affiliate and partner marketing, Lyxel & Flamingo – Boat and Paytm Ads – Giva took silver. Mobavenue Media Private Limited struck gold in AI-driven dynamic creative optimisation, alongside a silver for Laqshya Media Limited.
Creative AI collaboration saw Rediffusion Brand Solutions Private Limited win gold, with Saltinc Consulting Private Limited securing silver. Laqshya Media Limited continued its strong run, taking gold in AI conversation agents and adding multiple wins across categories, including silver in GenAI-led creative and both gold and silver in interactive DOOH campaigns for Tanishq and Tata Coffee.
Predictive AI honours went to Strong Metrics and Tyroo, both silver, while Orient Bell Limited picked up silver in immersive retail tech. In GenAI-led creative, Laqshya Media Limited, Salt – Kotak and Sumimoto each secured silver, reflecting the crowded race in generative creativity.
Publicis bagged silver in influencer management and gold in performance marketing, where it shared the stage with Arm Worldwide and The Trade Desk, both silver. Glad U Came Private Limited stood out with gold in influencer measurement and analytics.
Marketing automation saw CereOne Media Pvt. Ltd. and Globale Media win silver, while ADMOTT Private Limited claimed silver in OTT innovation.
Programmatic media categories highlighted the shift to advanced targeting and connected screens. Mobavenue Media Private Limited clinched gold in connected TV advertising, with Animmoov Digital Media Pvt Ltd – Asus and Lyxel and Flamingo taking silver. Cheggout Services Private Limited won silver in retail media advertising, while Paytm Ads – Versuni secured gold.
On social platforms, Vayner Media India took gold in community and UGC engagement, with Under 25 – Oppo winning silver. Segumento rounded off the list with silver in the innovation category.
Jaswant Singh, country managing director at ad:tech India, underscored the momentum, saying generative AI and data-driven decision-making are now central to marketing impact. Neena Dasgupta, IAA mancom member and chief executive and founder at The Salt Inc Consulting, added that the awards celebrate not just technology, but “the people, the creativity, and the relentless effort behind it.”
Backed by Comexposium Group, ad:tech New Delhi has long tracked digital disruption. Now, with the honours, it is rewarding those who are not just adapting to change but engineering it.
In an industry racing towards automation, the message from 2026 is unmistakable. The future of marketing will be written not just in ideas, but in algorithms.
