Singapore. January 17, 2019. The newly created WPP agency Wunderman Thompson announced today that it has appointed Annette Male as Chief Executive Officer for APAC, effective March 4, 2019. Annette will report to Global CEO Mel Edwards and will be based in Singapore.
As a 20-year industry veteran, Annette has built a reputation for inspiring growth for clients. Annette serves as the APAC CEO at Digitas until March 1, 2019, where she is responsible for the China, India, Australia, Hong Kong, Singapore and Malaysian markets. At Digitas, Annette has helped the agency win Agency of the Year twice in Australia and Singapore, as well as drive double-digit growth year over year the last four years. Before Digitas, Annette was the Deputy Managing Director at integrated agency Kitcatt Nohr, which is part of the Digitas family. She started her career at Mars and has also held roles at CHI & Partners, Tequila London and TBWA\GGT.
Mel Edwards, Global CEO, Wunderman Thompson said: “APAC is a key growth market for Wunderman Thompson, and we couldn’t be more delighted to have Annette leading our team there to deliver best in class work for our clients. Annette’s passion and understanding for the integration of creativity, data and technology makes her the right choice for us. We are excited for what the future holds in APAC.”
John Gutteridge has been appointed to the newly created role of Chief Executive Officer for Wunderman Thompson Australia/NZ, reporting in to the CEO of WPP AUNZ. John will also be a member of the WPP AUNZ Executive Committee and will be responsible for driving innovation across the entire WPP group.
Tamara Ingram, Chairman, Wunderman Thompson added: “John has been a strong leader in APAC and brought considerable talent and new business to the region. John and I have been in discussions since last year about his need to be closer to his family in Australia and this is a great outcome for both John and Wunderman Thompson.”
Caspar Schlickum, APAC CEO at Wunderman, will stay on board during the transition and has decided to pursue another opportunity in the industry in the APAC region.
The Wunderman APAC region consists of more than 4,300 people.
