Omnicom Media Group boss Cheuk Chiang steps down
The chief executive officer of Omnicom Media Group Asia-Pacific has stepped down after five years at the helm and a decade with the group, Mumbrella can reveal.
Cheuk Chiang first took over regional leadership from Barry Cupples in July 2013, having run OMG’s media brand PHD for the previous five years.
He told Mumbrella that the decision to depart had been six months in the making, and came from the difficulties of balancing the pressures of travelling across the region with being with his family at home in Melbourne in Australia.
He said: “The last ten years has been an amazing journey and an opportunity to work with some of the best talent in the business. Now it’s time to focus on my other family.”
Before joining Omnicom, Melbourne-born Chiang was the managing director of Cummins Nitro in Australia and has also held senior roles at the creative agencies M&C Saatchi and Leo Burnett.
Chiang’s departure is not the only one OMG has seen in recent months across the region. PHD Asia-Pacific boss Susana Tsui left to join Dentsu Aegis Network as China CEO in January. And OMG’s head of platforms Lee Smith left the organisation in February to start his own business.
Tony Harradine has now stepped into the role of CEO for Asia Pacific, having being promoted from OMG’s chief investment officer for APAC. He first joined the company in 2016.
Daryl Simm, global CEO and chairman of Omnicom Media Group, said in a statement: “Cheuk has made significant contributions to our organisation, not only as leader of OMG APAC, but also before that in establishing PHD in the region. We’re grateful for all his work and we all wish him the very best moving forward.”
Harradine added: “Today, we embark on a new journey in the region, taking bolder steps to define a new breed of products that anticipate and meet our clients’ evolving needs.As our business continues to transform, so do our strategies and objectives.
“I look forward to working with the teams across the region on driving the change for the industry, owning the opportunities presented to us by ongoing disruption, and continuing our group’s success story in Asia Pacific.”
Who didn’t see this coming? A vacuum at the exec level with the best talent leaving through the years. Ever since Barry left and the failed Publicom merger left them unable to counter anyone trying to hire that talent they have bled the people they needed the most.
It’s a shame it lasted so long but you now have one of the global power houses in media looking less stable than a plate of jelly in a hurricane.
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