Understanding Mainland China, Hong Kong, South Korea, and Taiwan: Interview with Jennifer Tan, CEO of Greater North Asia & Taiwan

Dentsu Group operates in over 145 countries and regions worldwide. This series interviews top management at overseas locations to explore how they develop business while addressing regional challenges, alongside trends in each operating region.

The fifth installment features an interview with Jennifer Tan, CEO of Greater North Asia & Taiwan. We discussed market trends in Mainland China, Hong Kong, South Korea, and Taiwan; challenges faced by clients; and dentsu's strategy in light of these factors.

*The interview was conducted in Tokyo on April 15, 2024.

 

Jennifer Tang, CEO of Greater North Asia & Taiwan. Joined dentsu in 2017 as CEO of dentsu Taiwan. Led the transformation of dentsu Taiwan, establishing its position as a market leader. Assumed current role in November 2023. Aims to integrate strategies across four regions—Mainland China, Hong Kong, South Korea, and Taiwan—to drive innovation, accelerate market responsiveness, and enhance solutions.

Aiming to be an end-to-end solution provider

──First, could you tell us about your current position and responsibilities?

I have served as CEO of Dentsu Taiwan since 2017. Since November 2023, I have also served as CEO of Greater North Asia, overseeing Mainland China, Hong Kong, South Korea, and Taiwan.

First, let me briefly explain how I joined dentsu Taiwan. I chose this industry because I deeply admired and was passionate about Ogilvy's (Editor's note: a UK advertising agency based in New York, part of the WPP Group) belief that "great creative creates magic." Later, when I learned that Dentsu Inc. was considering investing in Taiwan, I decided to move from Ogilvy to Dentsu Aegis Network (now dentsu Group). At that time, the evolution of digital technology was beginning to bring significant changes to many industries, including ours. I strongly felt the urgency and necessity for transformation at dentsu Taiwan as well. I wanted to make dentsu Taiwan's transformation a success, turn the entire industry around, and demonstrate a success story of an agency achieving growth to other markets.

──dentsu Taiwan has now established itself as a market leader. How did you drive this "transformation" upon becoming CEO?

The first thing I communicated to the team upon joining dentsu Taiwan was the need to evolve from our traditional role as a service provider offering creative, content, and media services into trusted advisors for our clients. I believe that by transforming from a service provider into an end-to-end solution provider in the marketing communications (MarCom) domain, we can become trusted advisors and growth partners for our clients. We drove this transformation to sustain business growth and evolve our team into what I call "modern talent." As we continue to grow as an organization, we will keep upgrading to transcend the traditional service provider framework and fulfill our role as a business partner.

We hope our success will inspire other regional markets and spark their own transformations. While each market is unique, it's crucial to learn from one another and discover approaches tailored to specific regions and markets. That is precisely what clients expect in their respective markets. Leveraging global resources and acting based on a global strategy is essential.

Value-Driven Solutions for the AI Era

──How do you view market trends and the challenges clients face in Mainland China, Hong Kong, South Korea, and Taiwan?

There are several. First, technological evolution is significantly impacting clients' businesses. Right now, clients' primary concern is "what will happen next in their industry and business." For example, the automotive industry has evolved beyond being just a means of transportation into a platform providing various services—essentially becoming a mobile device industry. Additionally, the healthcare industry, which greatly impacts our business, is exploring whether to focus on B2B or move directly into B2C. Thus, across various sectors, there's heightened concern about business sustainability. Clients seek not just short-term success but continuous growth strategies during this transformative period. This trend feels particularly strong recently.

Similarly, clients are showing heightened interest in branding. Over the past decade or so, clients have sometimes been overly fixated on performance metrics, such as how to boost conversion rates on digital platforms. However, while short-term performance remains important, they now equally emphasize cultivating long-term "brand love." These two aspects should complement each other, requiring a strategy that integrates short-, medium-, and long-term goals. This is the second trend.

The third trend is that while creative, traditional advertising, and digital marketing were once the mainstream, clients now show interest in other marketing opportunities. They are paying attention to entertainment and gaming sectors, seeking diverse touchpoints.

Our business engages with local clients, Japanese clients, and global clients, and these three trends apply to all of them. In regions like China, where over 80% of client budgets are allocated to social commerce, there is sometimes greater demand for social commerce. In Taiwan and South Korea, that ratio is slightly lower. What is common across all regions is that clients seek end-to-end solutions within the ecosystem.

──How is the rapidly spreading AI impacting clients and dentsu's business?

Regarding AI, clients believe its application drives efficiency and effectiveness, and they seek value-driven solutions powered by AI. These are solutions motivated above all by "value." Our proposed solutions must continuously deliver value to clients' businesses and brands, whether through growth or efficiency.

Preserve old money while generating new money

─What do you think is required of dentsu to address the challenges clients face?

First, we believe we must fully establish consulting services. If clients are focused on business transformation, we need the capability to become their partner, supporting them in solving problems and formulating growth strategies. It's crucial we not only establish business units but also possess the right methodologies.

Second, we urgently need to acquire vertical expertise and know-how across the entire value chain (from production to sales) within our clients' industries. Examples include the automotive, healthcare, and fashion industries. These efforts are crucial for our team's future growth and for delivering value to clients.

Furthermore, we need a new type of talent. The consulting world demands individuals with skill sets different from those we've traditionally employed. Beyond capabilities, strengthening our talent is an urgent priority.

We also need to consider multifaceted marketing. To achieve this, I believe we should leverage dentsu's capabilities, experience, and resources in entertainment and sports more effectively.

──Regarding media and creative, which have long been dentsu's strengths, how do you envision their future?

Even in our core service areas of media and creative, modernization is essential. We must never forget who we are and what we have built our livelihood upon. I always tell our teams that to embark on a transformation journey, we must generate new money (growth from new businesses) as quickly as possible while simultaneously sustaining old money (growth from existing businesses).

So how do we maintain the old money? The answer lies in transformation and modernization. To modernize media, combine media with data. This improves performance. Or, by combining media with creative, we can significantly enhance the effectiveness of media investments.

Similarly, to modernize creative, we must elevate its level and drive transformation to achieve top-tier output. This requires fostering a new culture and innovation. For instance, integrating AI with creative can generate new content. These efforts modernize our core competencies, enabling us to sustain growth from existing businesses while generating growth from new ones.

Japanese companies must think globally from the outset

──How do you view the business opportunities and challenges for Japanese companies in mainland China, Hong Kong, South Korea, and Taiwan?

Japanese brands are globally highly regarded for their quality, attention to detail, and comprehensive approach. However, in the rapidly evolving global market, consumer preferences are constantly changing. To achieve sustained success overseas, Japanese companies must be more agile, open-minded (flexible), and culturally inclusive.

Japanese products carry a premium image in markets like Taiwan, South Korea, and China, with young consumers highly valuing their innovation and quality. Yet despite these strengths, Japanese brands often struggle with local insights and cultural understanding, sometimes coming across as overly sophisticated. Effective global marketing requires understanding each market's unique characteristics and communicating clearly.

For example, South Korea's K-POP industry, supported by government backing and possessing trend-sensitive sensibilities, has become a massive industry with global influence. Korean companies develop content with a global perspective from the outset, securing broad support. Similarly, Japanese companies can achieve global success by incorporating a global perspective from the start, balancing respect for their unique culture with broad appeal (making it feel more relatable and attractive to a wider audience).