> Ravi Rao Named CEO Groupm MENA

Ravi Rao has been named CEO Groupm, WPP’S media investment group, for the MENA region. Previously, CEO at Mindshare MENA, Rao replaces Filip Jabbour, appointed in 2015 when Groupm launched in the region, who has taken the decision to step down. Rao is tasked with driving the strategy and growth of Groupm and its media agencies in the region as the group focuses on helping clients grow their business via talent, scale and technology. He will be building on the work led by Jabbour over the last four years when Groupm’s media agencies won substantial new clients - most recently Mars, Adidas, YUM (Pizza Hut) and Huawei – and launched new service offers in trading, digital and data. Over the last several years, [M]PLATFORM, Groupm’s proprietary data management platform, has been scaled and the business has streamlined structures across key business areas and markets to offer further advantages to clients. Rao began his career, after business school in Mumbai, by launching the first P&G brand, Ariel in India. He has over 30 years of experience in media investment with 25 years working for a range of clients including Unilever, P&G and Pepsico in South Asia and MENA. Delivering in-depth knowledge of local markets and enthusiasm for harnessing new data technology, Rao’s role of delivering tangible results for clients is balanced with ensuring the best talent is in place in the region, as well as driving global and product innovations. Jabbour and Rao will work closely together to manage a smooth transition over the coming weeks, with Rao taking the CEO post from June 2019. Rao’s replacement at Mindshare will be announced in due course.