TotallyAwesome appoints country manager for Indonesia

Youth digital-engagement company TotallyAwesome has named Ridwan S Hidayat (pictured) as Indonesia country manager to beef up its operations. He was most recently client services director of Essence and was previously the agency's planning director. Before Essence, he was also the senior media and promotion manager at Kraft Heinz ABC in Indonesia, according to his LinkedIn. Hidayat has also worked at Mindshare for more than three years as group head, his LinkedIn added.

Hidayat said TotallyAwesome is a unique media business with a focus on helping kids and families connect with brands through safe and private interaction. "Helping protect our youngest internet audiences and their families in the digital environment is a big focus for government and business. I am very excited to be leading TotallyAwesome in Indonesia and contributing to high-quality interaction between brands and young audiences," he added.

Meanwhile, CEO of TotallyAwesome Asia Pacific, Will Anstee, said Hidayat's credentials to lead TotallyAwesome have been shaped by his client service and planning experience. "As the digital world evolves, there is a growing need for human assessment and guidance in how brands reach out to digital audiences, especially our Indonesia youth that make up over 30% of the population. We need to protect them and ensure brands are stepping up to play a more meaningful role in their lives. Hidayat will lead this for us in Indonesia. I'm terribly excited and proud to have him join us on this journey," he added.

Anstee joined the company last year from his Asia Pacific president role at Initiative. He previously spent about seven years at Mediabrands, helming various roles including chief growth officer of Mediabrands, CEO of Universal McCann Japan, and client managing partner, Asia Pacific of Mediabrands. Meanwhile, in April, the company also appointed former APAC CEO of Grace Blue Partnership, Jean-Michel Wu, as head of talent. He is responsible for identifying and attracting the best talent in Asia Pacific that is suited to TotallyAwesome’s growth plans. 

TotallyAwesome aims to offer a safe digital environment for children and their families to interact with child-focused products on the Internet, while acknowledging and supporting the world’s regulations protecting kids’ data privacy.

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