dentsu Malaysia names Kunal Roy CEO of creative service line

Dentsu Malaysia has appointed Kunal Roy (pictured) to the newly created role of CEO dentsu creative service line. Roy (pictured) will initiate the transformation of dentsu malaysia’s creative line of service in tandem with dentsu international’s brand evolution and simplified business model, developing a modern creativity offering underpinned by a new delivery model called “AOR - agency of record - on demand”.

Roy brings 20 years’ worth of experience with agencies such as Leo Burnett, Saatchi & Saatchi, Cheil Worldwide, Ogilvy, BBDO, and TBWA\. According to dentsu, he has a demonstrated track record in building brands with clients such as Samsung, Coca Cola, adidas, McDonald’s, Unilever, P&G, Standard Chartered Bank, Mondelez, Nestlé, Ministries of Tourism, Etihad Airways, Axiata, and Maxis. He was previously chief strategy officer at Publicis Groupe and was responsible for operationalising the Groupe's purpose in driving transformation for clients. During his time there, he reported to Tan Kien Eng who joined dentsu Malaysia as CEO in February this year.

Roy said:  "I am truly excited to take on this role at dentsu. I have always believed that creativity has the power to transform businesses, brands, and peoples’ lives. Dentsu’s heritage is rooted in innovation and a forward-thinking culture; that along with the dynamic talent in Malaysia will only propel me further to bring together meaningful creative solutions to augment our clients’ businesses and make their brands magnets."

Meanwhile, Tan said he has ambitious plans for dentsu Malaysia as a creative powerhouse. "I'm thrilled to have Roy's strategic and creative experience on board. Roy will be partnering the Malaysian media and CXM team as well as the network to drive end-to-end creative solutions to ensure our clients achieve sustainable growth," he added.

Separately, the agency recently beefed up its media line of service in Malaysia by bringing on board Hemanth Jayaraman as partner and agency brand lead of dentsu X, Asha Nair as MD of media investment and platforms and Jing-Wen Foo as eCommerce director. All three of them report to Dheeraj Raina, CEO of media brands.

On the global front, dentsu international recently named Fred Levron its global chief creative officer, effective 1 November. Levron will lead the network’s holistic creative agenda and its portfolio of creative agencies worldwide, joining from FCB where he has served as worldwide creative partner for more than four years since 2016, according to his LinkedIn. Earlier this month, Merlee Jayme was also appointed chief creative officer, Asia Pacific to oversee creative and experience agencies in the region.

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