Hill+Knowlton breaks into Indonesia market with Marianne Admardatine leading ops

Global public relations agency Hill+Knowlton Strategies (H+K) has expanded its Asia footprint with the launch of its Indonesia office. An operating company of WPP, H+K will take over Verve, the public relations unit of Wunderman Thompson, also a WPP company. Currently, the Verve team is approximately 28 staff strong and will be assimilated into the H+K family.

H+K Indonesia will be led by CEO Marianne Admardatine, former CEO of Wunderman Thompson Indonesia, who relinquished her role in December last year, a year after the merger of JWT and Wunderman. Admardatine was also responsible in setting up of Verve in Indonesia in 2018. Joining Admardatine at H+K from Verve will be current managing director Harry Deje, and public affairs director Ahmad Zaki.  

A 25-year veteran in the Indonesian communications and marketing industry, Admardatine brings extensive leadership experience in issues and crisis management, C-Suite counsel, branding, marketing and public relations. Admardatine also held stints as managing director of Ogilvy PR and Pulse Communications previously, and also held senior management roles, including responsibility for network and business development, within the Ogilvy Group Indonesia. At H+K, she will report to HS Chung, Asia president. 

In a conversation with Marketing Interactive, Chung explained that by entering the market with seasoned local leadership, the agency will then have a foundation in place to serve existing clients and capture more market share. According to Chung, success in the Indonesian market is reliant on relationships and understanding the unique media landscape of this rapidly growing market. “Admardatine and her team are well-respected and recognised for providing excellent client service to many leading brands in Indonesia, and I am excited she is bringing this experience and leadership to our H+K team,” she said. 

Meanwhile, H+K's current expansion plans include markets such as Vietnam and Philippines, but what is key for Chung when breaking into any new market is having the right talent and leadership in place, which she felt Indonesia possessed. She explained that plans to launch H+K in Indonesia began in the fourth quarter of last year, when the world was pre-COVID-19. But as an agency which has stood the test of time, first launching in 1927, H+K sees the entry into the market a long-term investment into Asia - albeit done cautiously.

“We need to now shift the conversation to think of post-COVID-19 and offer comprehensive offerings to clients be it local entities, governmental entities or MNCs to become their C-suite advisory in an age of uncertainty. In this new world the chief communication officer has to be involved in the overall company direction. H+K has the ability to advice the C-suites on this new era,” she explained.   

Admardatine added that in these ever-changing times, it is more important than ever to show the agency’s long-term commitment to the market. “We want to reassure clients that we will provide them with the exceptional service that H+K is renowned for, and I look forward to building on this with my experience and knowledge of the Indonesian market,” she said. She told Marketing Interactive that today story-telling is rooted in data, and clients are moving beyond just asking for just a PR release. This is where her strength comes in given her background with Wunderman Thompson. “Clients today are channel agnostic and their expectations are changing. They want a fuller picture,” she explained.

Undaunted by the current pandemic situation, she added that it has been an eye opening experience on the diversity of talent and how the staff has been able to evolve and learn new skillsets beyond what would have traditionally been required of them. “We are now focused on learning and understanding the H+K systems, and building our skillset. The team is hungry to learn,” she added.

She added that having helped in launching Verve in its initial days, she does not anticipate much of a cultural misfit in her leadership style. “It is almost like we are all moving into a new house together, but the family has remained intact,” she added.

Meanwhile, AnnaMaria DeSalva, global chairman and CEO of H+K said Indonesia has significant presence in the world with the 16th largest economy and fourth most populous country.

“Indonesia continues to experience significant economic growth and is attracting investment by multi-national companies from the region and well beyond. Establishing the H+K brand in this dynamic market with a team of accomplished professionals directly supports our plan for ongoing growth in Asia,” she said. 

Most recently, H+K Singapore named Matthew Briant managing director to take over from former managing director of Singapore and Malaysia Michelle Tham. He was previously the head of digital at The Walt Disney Company Asia Pacific, and now becomes part of H+K Asia’s senior management team, spearheading H+K Singapore. The agency has a strong presence in Singapore, Malaysia, Korea and Thailand.