Ogilvy Malaysia CEO David Mayo to exit

Ogilvy Malaysia CEO and country head David Mayo (pictured) will be stepping down from his role effective at the end of August. Mayo first took on the role in January 2017, replacing John Deschner.According to an internal memo seen by A+M, Mayo decided not to renew his contract with Ogilvy from December in order to pursue a "new direction". He has been with the agency for 21 years, starting off as regional business director and overseeing accounts including Guinness and KFC.He also successfully launched RedCard, which worked with clients including Motorola. Mayo has worked closely with all aspects within Ogilvy over the years, from creative and commercial, to peer and client communities.In a statement to A+M, Mayo said he has done everything he ever wanted to at Ogilvy in Asia, from mergers and acquisitions to acquiring new business.“My focus now is on generating a more future-focused and dynamic business environment. The world is changing very fast and agencies have to recognise what the clients and brands want rather than simply protecting turf and selling tools,” Mayo added.The move follows earlier reports on Ogilvy Malaysia and J. Walter Thompson (JWT) Malaysia combining resources under a single leadership team, while having separate P&Ls, led by CEO Saurabh Saksena. In a statement to A+M at the time, Ogilvy’s spokesperson said this is in a move to unite the best of Malaysia’s marketing talents. The integration had been in the works for over 12 months and no staff cuts are expected.Before Ogilvy Malaysia, Mayo was last CMO of Ogilvy & Mather Asia Pacific and was based out of Singapore. Prior to that, he was the CEO of Bates CHI&Partners for more than four years. In the past, Mayo has worked as the president with Ogilvy and Advertising and Asean and had been with the company for more than 15 years.  He has also been the business development director at Bates Asia in the past.A+M understands that Deschner has relocated to the US. Deschner took on the role in August of 2015 and joined the team from Deutsch LA in the United States where he was executive director. Under his leadership, Jacey Lee was promoted as Ogilvy & Mather Malaysia’s new chief operating officer.