M&C Saatchi Performance names new Indonesia lead

International performance marketing agency M&C Saatchi Performance has named Nachiket Desai (pictured) as its new country director for Indonesia. He takes over from Roshat Adnani, managing partner for Asia Pacific (APAC).

In a statement shared with MARKETING-INTERACTIVE, the company said that Desai will focus on business growth and profitability for the business in his new role.

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Reporting to Adnani, he will be responsible for establishing new services catered specifically for the Indonesian market, with a focus on retail commerce, digital transformations, and D2C businesses. A team of over 70 marketers will be under his charge at the Jakarta office.

Desai has been with M&C Saatchi Performance for over five years, with a notable achievement being kick-starting the agency’s Jakarta office in 2019. In this time, he held leadership roles such as associate director from 2021 to 2022 and account director from 2022 to 2023. He has since played a significant role in growing the business by increasing revenue and diversifying its client portfolio, according to the statement.

Prior to that, he was senior account manager at the company from 2018 to 2019 before relocating from Mumbai to Jakarta. Following that, he served in the same capacity in Jakarta until 2021.

Before M&C Saatchi Performance, Desai held a client servicing role as associate account director at Interactive Avenues, a digital marketing agency based in Mumbai. In this position, he was responsible for managing brands across verticals such as eCommerce, real estate, and entertainment, working with clients such as The Economist, Sony, and FedEx.

“I am delighted to announce Desai’s promotion to country director, Indonesia, a journey that began when he joined as our first hire in 2019 for the Jakarta office,” said Adnani.

He mentioned that throughout his journey from senior account manager to being a key leader, Desai has played a pivotal role in growing the business and shaping a collaborative and innovative work culture.

“As we expand in the market, we trust Desai to take our business to newer heights while making Jakarta a center of excellence in the region,” he added.

"I've witnessed in first-person the huge growth that our business has experienced in Indonesia since we first launched. When we opened in 2019, there was only a few of us and today we're over 70 in the team," said Desai.

He cited Indonesia's growing economy and fast talent development in the digital industry as a dynamic landscape for the agency to make meaningful impact for brands investing in digital media.

"Driving our clients' growth will remain our priority while we leverage the latest performance marketing technologies to innovate. In the long-term, we hope to make our business in Jakarta a centre of excellence for the whole APAC region," he added.

On an international front, the agency also promoted its managing director for APAC, Kabeer Chaudhary, to the role of global chief executive officer in June 2023. He took over from James Hilton, who continued his role as chairman of the agency.

Chaudhary has been with the agency since 2015, serving as managing director for APAC from 2021 to 2023. Under his leadership, the agency strengthened its positioning in the region, onboarding clients across different verticals, it said in a statement at the time.

In his new remit, Chaudhary will be responsible for managing the agency’s operations across APAC, the Middle East, Europe, and the United States. Based in Singapore, he will work closely with global leadership and country heads to evolve the agency’s global proposition.

This year, M&C Saatchi, a sister agency under the M&C Saatchi Group, also bolstered its Southeast Asia offering with a new chief growth officer role. Anish Daryani took the reins, with the aim to drive growth through regional new business, develop new capabilities for the region, and expand into new markets.

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