What is ticking for Omnicom Media Group’s Indonesia office?
Beiersdorf, Heinz, Telkomsel, Carrefour – some of the biggest pitches to have happened in Indonesia earlier this year – have all found their way to the Omnicom Media Group office. With the addition of staff to service the new businesses and to be able to further integrate OMD’s operating system Vision and PHD’s Source, Omnicom Media Group is also gearing up to shift to a new, “state of the art” office. For a relatively younger player in the market, Omnicom Media Group’s good run can be attributed to not only the growth that Indonesia per se is witnessing but also to some fundamental changes that the media holding company undertook in the last year on the back of re-energising its foundation.
Growth, growth, growth – those are the three words that Jasmin Sohrabji, CEO, Omnicom Media Group Southeast Asia and India associated with Indonesia when she took over the regional mandate last year. “The pace of work, the rush of the new biz wins, the demand for recruitment and the need to ensure that our offer in Indonesia was maintaining a global benchmark was all akin to the kind of growth and energy we had witnessed in markets such as India,” stated Ms Sohrabji, reiterating her optimistic outlook about the future prospects of the market.
Jasmin Sohrabji, Omnicom Media Group
Ms Sohrabji’s words echo the overall economy sentiment. At 15 per cent, Indonesia is seeing one of the fastest AdEx growth rates in the region. The burgeoning consumer base and Indonesia’s response to embracing newer forms of media, mobile and ecommerce are making it one of the more important markets for various global players. Omnicom Media Group factored in the changing market scenario, the expected increase in demand and worked on assembling the right arsenal that would ready it to make its own mark.
OMD’s Global CEO, Mainardo de Nardis, speaks on the growth of Indonesia
Rajat Basra, Omnicom Media Group
The first steps
Some of the early steps from the agency were conceived with the aim of cementing the foundation and enhancing organic growth. “We saw a double-digit organic growth that came on the back of a better product, finer people and stronger relationships with stakeholders,” explained Rajat Basra, CEO, Omnicom Media Group Indonesia. Omnicom Media Group also had begun bringing in the digital advantage to the agency at the time. Apart from investing in training people with new skillsets, the agency had introduced its programmatic offer – Accuen in Indonesia and had set up an Insights Lab through strategic alliances.
Mr Basra also puts a premium on the ambition that the newer networks in Indonesia have exhibited in the last year. “Media in Indonesia is entering into a new, more sophisticated mode. Clients are asking agencies to play a deeper role and the hungry agencies are willing to roll up their sleeves to collaborate and grow with clients. Not only are client-agency relationships being redefined but also in the course, nimbleness and flexibility is being appreciated,” he elaborated.
A challenger brand’s war
The media agency scene in Indonesia has been strong for media holding companies such as GroupM and IPG Mediabrands. The likes of Omnicom Media Group and Havas Media Group, that are comparatively newer players, have been on the aggressive ensuring that they can make the most of the opportunities that the market has to offer.
“The pressure on Indonesia media agencies is a little higher due to consumer habits that need more than traditional media lines to be activated. Omnicom Media Group has carefully moved on a plan to diversify our ecosystem and more importantly deliver deep-rooted solutions for our clients, who have co‐invested in this vision,” observed Mr Basra.
Talent & technology at the centre
“Various markets in the Southeast Asia region are depicting signs of growth in both traditional and digital media. While Indonesia is on similar lines, some distinct factors stand out including consumers here being very active on social media and the growth of ecommerce and mobile. Our endeavour is to build our practice in a manner that is able to give marketers solutions that are both relevant and pioneering,” stated Ms Sohrabji, elaborating on the overall thought process that the media holding company looks to follow.
The media holding company’s focus on the likes of social, mobile and content are steps in this direction. “However, the area where we are able to make the most difference is through our investment in insights,” Mr Basra added. To this effect, Omnicom Media Group is also looking to enhance the focus on its diversified services – Accuen, Brand Science and Airwave.
Another area that the group looks to invest in is its talent pool. In addition to university initiatives, setting up a pan regional resource pool, training and establishing awards, Ms Sohrabji divulges that the company is also looking to add senior digital resources in Indonesia.
“Omnicom Media Group has attained a certain momentum in the last year, and our Indonesia leadership team has done a great job of achieving this. The task at hand is to build on, and accelerate, this. Technology today is transforming businesses – internally and externally. We have always put digital at the core of our offer, and in the year ahead, you will see us sharpen this focus,” Ms Sohrabji remarked.
Road ahead
While the spotlight is on talent and technology, in the year ahead, another area that Omnicom Media Group would be accentuating focus on is further develop both OMD and PHD brands in the market. Omnicom Media Group has identified a four-way strategy to augment its future growth in the market. “I call it the master pieces, where we will invest time and energy,” said Mr Basra. He articulated these to be operational excellence that aimed to focus on the trading, finance, infrastructure and structural corrections in the company; the growth of specialist business units and organic expansion; the focus on communication planning through Vision and Source and finally the focus on manpower. “Each of these would be critical for us to achieve our ambitions for 2015,” Mr Basra summed up.
