MAM
Word of Mouth Media elevates Jimmy Shahani to CEO
Mumbai: Word of Mouth Media, a player in the audiovisual and digital content category, has elevated its chief operating officer Jimmy Shahani to the position of chief executive officer.
Shahani comes with over 15 years of experience in operations, human resources, and business administration. He has diverse experience across industries, including Media, IT, and ITES, having worked with companies like WNS, IBM, Prime Focus, and Tech Mahindra, to name a few.
“Jimmy has been part of our core team since he joined us four years back,” said Word of Mouth Media, founder, Vineet Panchhi. “His positive outlook, creative mindset, and leadership values are all goal-worthy to succeed, especially as we move ahead in the ‘Next Normal.’ In the current period of accelerated transformation, we hope to provide a robust approach and work more closely with our clients to navigate pandemic-induced uncertainty. I congratulate Jimmy in his new role and will continue to support him in strengthening new partnerships and exploring new geographies.”
“The Covid-19 pandemic galvanised businesses to innovate and shift focus towards customers’ preferences leading massive transformation in the advertising & marketing industry,” Panchhi added.
“We are one of the few boutique agencies that have successfully survived the challenges posed by the pandemic by innovating our products and making them hybrid and focusing on digital services,” said Word of Mouth Media, co-founder, Sarika Panchhi. “The customized hybrid model has worked beautifully for us, and we continue to keep our workforce safety a top priority. The new format will help us serve our clients better, explore new markets and strengthen our focus on the revived sustainability portfolio. I am confident that the team under the guidance of Jimmy’s capabilities will scale new heights.”
Speaking on his new role, Shahani said, “I am honored to take the new responsibilities and look forward to scaling the business to new heights. The changing consumer behavior, shifting viewer choices, increased inclination towards environmentally-conscious practices etc, demand brands to deliver more creative and personalized experiences in a sensitized tone. Therefore, one of the major priorities for me will be to deliver business outcomes for clients through impactful ideas and new storytelling channels.”
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.
