Sean O’Brien Tapped as CEO of MKTG and Posterscope in Asia Pacific

Dentsu Aegis Network has announced Sean O’Brien, CEO Carat Asia Pacific, will become CEO for the group’s lifestyle and experiential marketing agency MKTG and out of home specialist Posterscope in Asia Pacific, to accelerate Dentsu Aegis Network’s capabilities in marketing to consumers whilst out of the home. Kevin Walsh will be promoted from Managing Director to CEO of Carat Asia Pacific.

During the six years Sean has been CEO, Carat has become the fastest growing media agency in Asia Pacific, growing at 2.5 times the market and tripling the size of the business. Last year both Sean and Kevin worked with teams across the region to win over one billion USD of new business. Carat also held the top position in the region for RECMA’s Qualitative Network Diagnostics report for 7 of the last 8 reports which ranks agencies according to their quality. Sean has been named Campaign Asia’s Agency Head of the Year on two occasions.

Nick Waters CEO Dentsu Aegis Network Asia Pacific said, “Under Sean’s leadership Carat has delivered exceptional growth and has developed a high quality product in markets across the region. Sean will now focus on the development of two agencies with outstanding growth opportunities in Asia Pacific – MKTG and Posterscope. Posterscope is a pioneer of out of home advertising and MKTG a leader in experiential marketing. We need strong leadership to maximise the opportunities the digital revolution is creating in both businesses. Kevin’s promotion represents the smooth execution of the Carat leadership succession plan.”

The move will see Sean accelerate the digitisation of Posterscope, including the roll out of “Liveposter” whilst expanding MKTG’s presence across Asia Pacific and ownership of assets in the sports, music, events and activation space.

Sean O’Brien said, “It has been a privilege to help build Carat over the last six years, working with some of the best talent in the region, both agency and client side. The business is in great hands with Kevin, who will continue our growth and momentum and use his outstanding digital credentials to position us well for the future. I’m looking forward to working with the MKTG and Posterscope teams to further scale our business across the region and drive business value for our clients.”

Kevin has over 20 years’ experience in the industry, 15 of which in digital roles. He joined the Group with global digital performance marketing agency iProspect and moved internally to Carat to take on the role of Chief Digital Officer for the region. Last year he was promoted to Managing Director of Carat Asia Pacific.

“With the digital economy disrupting all industries, Carat needs to remain at the forefront of convergence so as to help our clients navigate what is a tremendously complex landscape. I’m looking forward to stepping into the new role and continuing the rapid growth ambitions while working closely with the outstanding talent we have in the business across the region,” said Kevin Walsh.