Understanding the Asia-Pacific Region: Interview with Rob Gilbey, CEO of dentsu APAC

The Dentsu Group operates in over 145 countries worldwide. Under its newly established management structure, the "Group Management Team," it is structured around four key business regions: Japan, Americas, APAC, and EMEA. This series interviews top management leading each overseas business region. We explore how leaders in each region are developing their businesses through new opportunities while tackling challenges head-on, alongside regional trends.

For the first installment, we spoke with Rob Gilbey, CEO of dentsu APAC based in Singapore, about trends in the Asia-Pacific (APAC) region.

*The interview was conducted online on April 21, 2023.

 

Rob Gilby, CEO of dentsu APAC. Member of the Group Executive Management team, the group management committee of the Dentsu Group (dentsu). Since 1995, he has built his career in various cultural spheres, including Hong Kong, Tokyo, and Singapore. He has held key positions at PricewaterhouseCoopers, Turner, The Walt Disney Company, Nielsen, and other companies. In September 2022, he was appointed CEO of the Dentsu Group (Dentsu Inc.) for the APAC (Asia-Pacific) region. His hobbies include music and sake. He is from the Isle of Wight, UK.

 

The most diverse region in the world

――First, please tell us about your current responsibilities.

I serve as CEO of dentsu APAC, based in Singapore, working with over 10,000 colleagues across the Asia-Pacific region. At Dentsu Inc., the APAC (Asia-Pacific) region encompasses all markets in the Asia-Pacific region excluding Japan. Experts predict this vast and dynamic region will become the most critical decision-making sphere by 2030.

――What are the defining characteristics of the APAC market?

As mentioned, the APAC region is arguably the most diverse in the world. It boasts diversity in culture, background, and behavior. This region is primarily divided into five clusters: China, South Asia, Southeast Asia, Australia and New Zealand (ANZ), and North Asia.

China, including mainland China, Hong Kong, and the Greater Bay Area, is a large market, but it contains many submarkets. These include the Northeast with Beijing and Tianjin, the East with Shanghai, the South with Guangzhou and Hong Kong, and the Southwest with Chongqing. It is a massive yet uniquely diverse market.

A key trend in Chinese marketing is its focus on data-driven approaches. Through ecosystems like Alibaba, Tencent, ByteDance, and Baidu, social, commerce, and content platforms in China are becoming increasingly vital, handling most commercial transactions. Digital payments dominate in China, making it a highly innovative market that could help identify potential marketing trends poised to lead this region and, by extension, the world in the coming months and years.

※Originally a term related to ecosystems. In business, it refers to "a system where companies cooperate and collaborate to achieve mutual growth and prosperity."

South Asia is another cluster centered around India. Over the past seven years, India has undergone rapid digital transformation. As part of this shift, 4G was launched, reaching 100 million subscribers within six months. Current 4G subscribers now exceed 600 million, fueling explosive growth in e-commerce platforms, digital streaming, and digital payments. This has also driven remarkable expansion in the market for small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs). With the launch of 5G in October 2022, India has now entered a new phase of digital transformation. Further explosive growth is anticipated, and Dentsu Inc. believes it can play a significant role in India's growth trajectory, particularly in the areas of experience transformation and business transformation.

Southeast Asia comprises six major countries: Indonesia, Thailand, Singapore, Malaysia, the Philippines, and Vietnam. With a population of 650 million, it is a complex cluster where the middle and affluent classes are rising, social media usage is the highest globally, and the adoption of digital platforms is rapidly increasing. Digital content, digital media services, and e-commerce have also experienced rapid growth in recent years. Furthermore, the emergence of super apps like Grab and Gojek, which provide end-to-end customer ecosystems ranging from ride-hailing to food delivery and payment services, is expected to positively impact areas such as data-driven marketing and creative.

Australia and New Zealand also form one of the APAC clusters. While smaller in scale compared to other countries, New Zealand is a highly successful market with a rich culture and compelling creative output. Australia is a mature market, exhibiting characteristics closer to Western European markets. The intense competition necessitates constant innovation, making it a market with significant potential.

North Asia, comprising Taiwan and South Korea as dentsu APAC, is one of our most successful markets. In Taiwan, we deliver powerful, innovative market proposals aligned with client needs. To gain market competitiveness in this region, collaboration with Japan—geographically and culturally close—is essential.

Japan's strength lies in its "built-in trust"

――Tell us aboutdentsu APAC'sclients.

Our clients fall into three main categories: Japanese clients, global clients, and local clients. A defining characteristic of dentsu APAC is the prominent presence of Japanese clients compared to other global agencies or global holding companies.

――Speaking of Japanese clients, what do you consider the strengths of Japanese brands and Japanese marketing?

Japanese brands possess several points of strong global competitiveness. One is product quality. This is something I believe is inherently embedded in Japanese business practices. The exceptional pursuit of quality in Japanese brand products heightens consumer trust in those products. In other words, Japanese brands come with "built-in trust" – trust that is inherent and unwavering. During a meeting with a Japanese client, I learned they faced supply chain issues causing significant delays between payment and delivery. Yet, due to loyalty and trust in the brand, customers didn't mind waiting. This is precisely what I mean.

Now, regarding the dentsu brand, I believe that for us to thrive globally, "Uniquely Dentsu Inc., distinctively local" – maintaining our Dentsu Inc. identity while being deeply rooted locally – is essential. It must be 'Dentsu Inc. India,' not Dentsu Inc. India; 'Dentsu Inc. China,' not Dentsu Inc. China. We must consistently deliver the Dentsu Inc. experience and service across all regions, while simultaneously making clients and partners feel we are deeply rooted in the local community.

The keys to growth lie in DX, commerce, and entertainment

—Where do you see opportunities to grow dentsu APAC's business?

Simply put, "everywhere" – opportunities exist everywhere. APAC is one of the world's fastest-growing regions, both in terms of per capita GDP growth and the adoption of new technologies.

So where are the growth opportunities? One is digital transformation. We believe we can create new value by viewing customer touchpoints holistically, not as silos (isolated, unconnected points), aligning with our clients' perspective.

We also see promise in "commerce" and "entertainment."

Commerce is a massive and expanding category encompassing physical retail in stores, e-commerce, and in China, live commerce and social commerce. From commerce, we can gain bottom-funnel data insights—consumer transactions, the psychology at the moment of purchase, and factors driving buying decisions. Furthermore, in many markets, retail media is becoming increasingly important as one of the newest media channels.

Entertainment encompasses sports and games. This is an area where Dentsu Inc. (dentsu Japan) has strength, so we've already learned a great deal from the Japanese team and intend to continue exploring how to roll out that model globally. Many Asian markets, including Taiwan, China, and India, are interested in the Japanese entertainment model.

――How do you envision collaborating with Dentsu Inc. (Japan) and the global network?

First, in the area of "clients." We believe there are always opportunities to improve how we provide excellent service to clients.

Another area is Dentsu Inc. (Dentsu Japan) 's "talent." We have an excellent network of Japanese expatriates in the APAC region, and we want to cultivate a stronger knowledge and talent-sharing network between them and the APAC markets. This is because they possess valuable knowledge, excellent perspectives, and rich experience and connections.

Then, "Innovation." When I brought the dentsu APAC leadership team to visit Tokyo, we received presentations on various innovations developed by Dentsu Inc., such as media buying, AI, and content services. This provided an opportunity to build connections for solving challenges. Ultimately, I want to establish a "Japan corridor" between us and Dentsu Inc. to promote mutual sharing.

And the final area of collaboration is "Culture." We are fortunate to have Gene Lin as our Chief Culture Officer. Gene possesses a deep understanding of Japanese, Asian, European, and American cultures. She has a remarkable global perspective and experience, and has developed a simple yet effective framework that is flexible enough to adapt to the contexts of Japan, China, Europe, and the US. We believe this framework will enable us to learn from and share the strengths of different cultures.

Cultural connections are formed when our Japanese team learns about overseas cultures and when teams in global markets learn about Japanese and APAC cultures. By achieving this deep mutual understanding, I believe we can become a truly global dentsu.