OMG boss Elie Khouri says there’s a war shaping up in the media world
Originally published in Communicate, November 2009
As regional managing director of planning and buying agency Omnicom Media Group, Elie Khouri has his finger on the pulse of the region’s media industry. He sat down with Communicate recently to tell us how media looks today, and what we can expect to see tomorrow. Read the rest of this entry »
Richard Pinder, now promoted to CEO, tells Communicate that, for Publicis, “better value” is not the same as “lower price”
Originally published in Communicate, June 2009
When Publicis Worldwide’s then chief operating officer (now CEO) Richard Pinder came to town, Communicate caught up with him to find out about the importance of value, North African creativity, and how Publicis Graphics (the regional manifestation of Publicis Worldwide, which is the lead creative agency in the Publicis Groupe holding company) should be winning more prizes. Read the rest of this entry »
Pride of Young Lions fails to roar
Originally published in Communicate, June 2009
Last month Communicate was invited to be among the 40 or so judges of the Cannes Young Lions competition in Dubai. The contest pitted teams of young creatives against one another to see who would win the chance to go and represent the UAE in Cannes this month.
Each year the competition picks a charity and the ads are created – in nine hours – against that noble cause’s brief. This year, the client was the UAE Make a Wish Foundation. The foundation grants wishes to seriously ill children between the ages of three and 18, and the brief was simply to raise brand awareness.
Some of the work on display looked like it could have been put together by those children. If their dying wish had been to work at an advertising agency, this might have been what they produced. It might have been quite impressive if the young creatives behind it were, say, at school. But they’re not; they are working at agencies. And not as interns, either; as fully paid-up members of staff. Read the rest of this entry »
Saatchi’s outspoken CEO Kevin Roberts tells Communicate that the time for analysis is over. Advertising is going to get ugly
Originally published in Communicate, June 2009
Saatchi & Saatchi global CEO Kevin Roberts was back in town recently to check up on the new regional management at the agency. A year after he created controversy across the Middle East by calling the region’s creative output “awful,” and the quality of work “crap,” Roberts’ agency is hoping to reinvent itself with a restructure. Read the rest of this entry »
Draftfcb’s chairman says it’s time for the agencies of the world to unite. They have nothing to lose but their silos
Originally published in Communicate, May 2009
Howard Draft, CEO of Draftfcb, was recently in Dubai to visit Horizon Draftfcb, his agency’s partner in the Middle East. Draftfcb is the product of a 2006 merger between below-the-line agency Draft, and Foote, Cone & Belding, the world’s third oldest advertising agency. Heritage doesn’t mean stagnation, though, says Draft. The agency bills itself as the world’s only global, integrated agency. The CEO tells Communicate what that means, and why other agencies will soon be following suit. Read the rest of this entry »
No toil or trouble at Adwomen ME’s first TrendTalks sessions
Originally published in Communicate, May 2010
ACT I
SCENE I. A desert place.
Thunder and lightning. Enter witches
Ah, the opening of Macbeth. It was the first thing which sprang to mind when Communicate was invited to the inaugural Adwomen ME TrendTalks, a get-together of 50 female members and various speakers organized by Adwomen Middle East. It was hard to escape visions of cauldrons and an evil coven, eager to boil this male journo alive. Read the rest of this entry »
As the paper celebrates its first birthday, Communicate finds the title still has a long way to go
Originally published in Communicate, May 2009
At a round table in Abu Dhabi last month, Gavin Dickinson, the executive director of publishing at The National, spoke with journalists about the newspaper’s business model. Like everyone else, it seems the daily has been hit by the credit crunch. But being young, bold, and blessed with very rich parents, it doesn’t really care. Read the rest of this entry »
Leo Burnett’s global CEO says forward planning has prepared his agency well for the economic slump. But all any agency can do now is watch and see what develops
Originally published in Communicate, May 2009
Tom Bernardin has been Leo Burnett’s global CEO since 2005, when he moved to the agency from Interpublic Group of Cos.’ Lowe. When he came to Dubai recently, Communicate caught up with him and regional managing director Kamal Dimachkie to find out how the global financial crisis is affecting Leo Burnett abroad and at home, and what others can learn from the agency’s approach to the slump. Read the rest of this entry »
As Lynx allegations fly, Communicate finds all’s fair in love and awards
Originally published in Communicate, April 2009
This year’s Lynx Awards and Dubai International Advertising Festival served up the sort of scandal, drama and intrigue that the industry – and Communicate – thrives on. Read the rest of this entry »
Changes are afoot at Publicis Groupe Media. Communicate catches up with the top brass to find out why the management team has been given a makeover
Originally published in Communicate, November 2008
Communications group Publicis Groupe Media, the parent company of buying and planning agencies Starcom MediaVest Group and ZenithOptimedia, has recently promoted three of its top men to more senior positions. Communicate sat down with the management to discuss what the changes mean to the group, and to take the pulse of the region’s media industry in general. Read the rest of this entry »
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