At Campaign Middle East’s first Agency of the Year awards, Bassel Kakish, Group CEO of Publicis Groupe, Middle East & Turkey took home the award for Head of Agency of the Year. We caught up with Kakish for a quick chat about his win.
Tell us about your journey to the award.
The team behind me is certainly greater than the sum of its parts, and that includes the award and my role. I am in an enviable position where I am surrounded by a talented team of people who continue to inspire me and others every day. As a leader, my responsibility is to enable and empower these individuals. This journey is a collaborative one, and it is an ongoing chapter of growth and learning.
How will the award help your agency to navigate forward in the industry?
The challenge upon us is to continue delivering on this path of excellence. We want to be drivers of change for the industry and for our clients. This requires us to be more bold, innovative and disruptive. We do this by understanding the consumer better by being the best growth partner for our clients and by truly harnessing the power of our capabilities across data, creativity, media and tech to pioneer unique solutions.
Why should other agencies enter these awards?
There is a sense of reaffirmation when you are recognised in the industry, by the industry. Award shows are a celebration of excellence and while there is an element of healthy competition, we are all peers navigating the same landscape and we face the same challenges. Awards present an opportunity for all of us to be in the moment and appreciate the journey that each of us has experienced to get here.
How are your customers’ demands changing?
With so many platforms competing for attention, consumers are increasingly becoming more selective and demanding of their engagements. When they do, they crave more meaningful and personalised experiences. We work closely with our clients to help them navigate through this complexity and help them build stronger connections with their audiences.
How are you changing to cater to your customers’ needs?
Publicis Groupe has been on an ever-evolving journey of transformation, making us agile to adapt to these changing times. This means having the right talent in place, investing in the right technologies, using data and insights to identify and plan and creating stronger synergies across our capabilities. Finally, we partner with our clients to unlock growth and help them win in this platform world.
What does 2023 look like?
There will be a creative commerce revolution. Watch this space.
Campaign Middle East celebrated the best minds in advertising, marketing and media at the Agency of the Year Middle East awards 2022. View all the winners here.
Campaign also runs Agency of the Year in the UK, Asia-Pacific and the US, and a global scheme, the Global Agency of the Year Awards, which is now open for entries.
