MANILA – Marking its 25th year, creative marketing communications and business solutions provider DDB Group Philippines announced today its expansion plan to build its brand and scale up business growth opportunities, with the aim of surpassing the 25 percent average growth rate it has maintained in the past decade.
At the same time in its milestone year, the 2017 Campaign Asia-Pacific Southeast Asia Agency of the Year competition saw DDB Group Philippines sweeping top awards as the Talent Management Team of the Year for two consecutive years and the Philippines’ first Corporate Communications Team of the Year awards in Singapore.
Led by Group chairman and CEO Gil G. Chua, DDB’s business in the Philippines has grown exponentially when he took over as president in 1999. Through strategic expansions from advertising to new services in related disciplines, it has emerged into the country’s first integrated marketing communications group that he said has brought tremendous value to its mostly market-dominant clients.
Speaking at the Group’s recent anniversary celebration, Chua cited the basis of his growth plan, “Our passion is to help the advertising industry evolve from merely creating ads to creating valuable innovative and creative business solutions that will help grow clients’ businesses and provide opportunities for Filipinos, by gathering and developing talents to address the changing landscape of communications and analytics.”
As such, the company has begun funding expansion and investment in branded entertainment, content creation, publications, as well as technologies, programmatic data analytics, and logistics, to provide valuable business solutions to the Group’s existing clients and future business partners. With an eye for the future, it has been upping its talent skills in business consultancy in strategy, advertising, PR and design, digital technology, CRM and E-commerce, and strategic media solutions.
The DDB Group of Companies and its affiliates now includes three agency networks (DDB Philippines, DDB MNL, Tribal Worldwide); three specialist agencies (Touch Media, Ripple8, Agile Intelligence); and eight strategic business units with expertise in branded content, out-of-home, manpower, printing, activation, logistics and training (Field Outsource Asia, Strawberry Jam, Cookie Shop, Beyond, Philippine Movers, Bent and Buzz, Optimax and The Bernbach School).
“Our people and partners will benefit greatly from the strong integrated services we offer. After the challenges we faced, we can now finally say, exciting times are ahead for our top talents whose passion, entrepreneurial spirit, deep commitment to our clients and our people are shown in their excellent work and delivering business results. We start sculpting the future,” Chua concluded.
Campaign Asia Agency of the Year
The Talent Management Team region award recognizes DDB Group as the team that has most effectively aligned the agency’s people strategies with business outcomes during the review period. Comprising senior marketers from key business categories, the judges considered the winning team’s ability to develop and implement effective talent management strategies for talent acquisition and retention, learning and staff development, succession planning and management, agency culture integration as well as reward and recognition initiatives. DDB Group won the award in 2016 and 2017.
On the other hand, DDB Group’s trophy for Corporate Communications Team of the Year award is a first for the Philippines, recognizing its success in addressing issues related to management, corporate communications, reputation, brand-building, campaign execution and media relations.
Campaign Asia-Pacific Agency of the Year awards are given to recognize the achievements of the region’s advertising industry, citing strong leadership, creativity and innovation, stellar new business performance, the development of talent in the region, and contribution to the industry.
In photo, tTwo-time winner of Campaign Asia-Pacific Southeast Asia Agency of the Year (AOY) award for Talent Management, The Culture Hub of DDB Group is in charge of the most important assets of the company, its people. It also won top AOY award as Corporate Communications Team of the Year. From left, standing: Joe Peña, Suzette Esguerra, Chris Canlas, Gil Chua, Willy Caparas, Oden Matteo, Ayie Tama, Micci Laroza, Carlos Santos. Seated: Fritzie Galam, Judd Balayan, Anna Chua-Norbert, Craig Lonnee and Heidi Tiamzon.
