VMLY&R has announced its EMEA executive leadership team with Andrew Dimitriou appointed Chief Executive Officer of EMEA (previously President). Dimitriou and the newly assembled team will be responsible for growing the agency’s capabilities, its key client partner relationships and connecting the network across disciplines in the region.
Dimitriou brings more than 20 years of industry experience, helping to transform global businesses and leading cross-disciplinary teams for the likes of Colgate and Xerox. EMEA is one of VMLY&R’s fastest growing regions - 35 new business wins in the last six months, and a projected 5% headcount growth – and is led by a team of market and capability leaders.
EMEA EXECUTIVE LEADERSHIP TEAM:
- Andrew Dimitriou, Chief Executive Officer, EMEA
- Jamie Mandelbaum, Chief Creative Officer, EMEA
- Saul Betmead, Chief Strategy Officer, EMEA
- Chris Wood, Chief Integration Officer, Europe
- Ann French, MD, Business Solutions, EMEA
- Dariusz Andrian, Chief Executive Officer, VMLY&R Poland
- Cecile Lejeune, Chief Executive Officer, VMLY&R France
- Simona Maggini, Chief Executive Officer, VMLY&R Italy
- Justin Pahl, Chief Executive Officer, VMLY&R UK
- Natalia Romanenko, Chief Executive Officer, VMLY&R Russia
- Arzu Unal, Chief Executive Officer, VMLY&R Turkey
The EMEA Executive Leadership Team will drive strategic changes in regional operations, starting with the launch of three Centres of Excellence (CoE) that will enable the agency to support evolving client needs and digital transformation capabilities.
The CoE will offer client partners deep technological expertise and accelerated access to a scalable set of capabilities across Customer Experience, Technology, Data & Analytics, Content, and much more. They will closely collaborate with the region’s network of local experts to offer best-in-class practices and expertise at scale.
The CoE will play a critical role in differentiating VMLY&R’s integrated offerings at the intersection of technology, creativity and culture to create connected brands.
Jon Cook, Global CEO, VMLY&R said:"I’m excited to have Andrew and this executive leadership team lead our agency growth in EMEA. Our ambition globally is to deliver a fully-integrated offering and to be an invaluable partner to our clients. I believe that our newly appointed leadership team and Centres of Excellence structure set us up for success in the EMEA region.”
Andrew Dimitriou, CEO EMEA VMLY&R, said: “With this infusion of talent, capabilities and markets, we are creating the most relevant marketing company in the region.”
“For example, we’ve been working with Lavazza for five years, and they have expanded their relationship with us due to the capabilities of our new Technology Centre of Excellence. The teams in Milan and Poland are now enabled to deliver connected consumer experiences that embed the brand in people’s lives and drive Lavazza’s strategic business priorities” he added.
Illustrating the breadth and depth of its offering, the agency recently launched campaigns such as THINK!’s Road Whisperer targeting new drivers, The Real Italian coffee for Lavazza taking the real Italian coffee brand around the world and the “Twój Weekend” Women Issue in partnership with Gazeta.pl using an erotic magazineto raise awareness of sexual education and gender equality.
ABOUT THE EMEA CENTERS OF EXCELLENCE
CUSTOMER EXPERIENCE
The CoE focuses on driving value from each interaction between a brand and a consumer, building loyalty along the customer lifecycle. It brings human-centred design, creative communications and technology together to create a seamless experience and uses insights to map the white spaces and derive growth opportunities.
Clients: Bridgestone, Ford.
TECHNOLOGY
The CoE offers end to end services, from consulting, development, systems maintenance, to precision marketing and eCommerce. It brings to life connected brands by engineering solutions across platforms including Adobe, Drupal, Sitefinity, Sitecore, mobile technologies and more; and provides the scale and nearshore capabilities that clients seek.
Clients: Bridgestone, Colgate, Pepsico, Danone, Lavazza, Medtronic, Telia Carrier.
CONTENT
The CoE develops high quality, cost-effective brand assets and content for relevant communications in a connected world, which are backed by intelligent community management and real-time analytics. It creates all forms of content from static visuals and low-cost video to high-quality films, AR and VR.
Clients: Vodafone, Google, PlayStation, EFES Pilsen, Emaar Mall.