Mike Amour is currently on a whirlwind tour of the region after being appointed CEO for Asia-Pacific of Havas this October.
Amour brings with him 27 years of experience in various agencies, having been managing director for Europe and EVP for Japan of the McCann Worldgroup, executive vice president of TBWA, founder of The O Partnership, CEO for APAC of the Grey Group, and president for APAC of Starcom.
Havas, today one of the world’s largest multinational advertising, media, and public relations company, has its origins in the French news agency founded in 1835, Agence Havas, that would later be known as Agence France-Presse.
adobo magazine caught up with Amour during his visit to Havas’ Philippine office for an exclusive interview.
Amour talks about the wealth of experience—from the various workings of the creative industry to the intimate knowledge of the region—he brings to Havas.
“This is the fourth network I’ve run in Asia-Pacific. But I think I’ve been very fortunate that each of the four agencies is actually quite different. Havas, in a way, ties it all together, because obviously, they are—through the Havas village concept—putting creative and media much more tightly back together, in a way that is not compartmentalized, like some of our competitors,” he notes.
His appointment as well as his location in Singapore represents a sea change for Havas. Juan Rocamora, whom Amour replaces, will be retiring to Barcelona this year.
“I think the appointment—my appointment in Singapore—sends a strong signal, to our own organization, that Havas is very committed to a far faster growth trajectory for the business in this region,” he notes, adding, “There’s absolutely no question that, in addition to making the Havas village concept a reality in all parts of Asia Pacific, it may be easier for us to do it out here, which is due to structure and size. In addition to that, there would be a significant component of business that will involve inorganic growth and partnership to that relations.”
