At Campaign Middle East’s first Agency of the Year awards, Tahaab Rais, chief strategy officer, Publicis Groupe MENAT was named ‘Strategic Leader of the Year’. We caught up with Rais for a quick chat.
Tell us about your journey to the award.
It has been an exciting time collaborating with brilliant partners and making great friends, coupled with emotional challenges and sacrifices that not many know of or see. It is an award worth remembering for those reasons.
How will the award help your agency to navigate forward in the industry?
Publicis Groupe is the widest, strongest and most connected one. And strategy plays a key role in orchestrating it. We have come up top across awards such as the Jay Chiat and Effies, we won newsworthy new businesses and now we won industry acclaim from clients. The company backs strategy as a key driver and clients want more of strategy. Getting recognised for it helps ascertain our leadership position as the best network for strategy.
Why should other agencies enter these awards?
It is an award that should matter, considering the clients who you partner with everyday vote on it. Being recognised by them is important because it shows that you are on the right track; it reinforces your brand and your people to the industry as the best of the lot.
How are your customers’ demands changing?
People want brands to matter more to consumers – through products, experiences, solutions, acts and content. Our role becomes imperative in channeling the intelligence of humans, AI and MI to help them create brands that matter.
How are you changing to cater to your customers’ needs?
By understanding people better, connecting our competencies and by bringing our best talent together across agencies and regions including creative agencies, media agencies, data and CRM agencies, PR and communications and digital business transformation. We work seamlessly to create a perfect harmony and elevate the lives of constantly evolving customers, and in turn, transform and elevate brands and businesses to their next.
What does 2023 look like?
In every challenge and crisis, there is an opportunity. In the midst of societal, economic and socio-political challenges, 2023 can be a year full of opportunities with exponential growth of technology, commerce and purpose-driven work.
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.
