JWT appoints new President

Thayalan Bartlett promoted to COO, JWT Jakarta :

JWT Asia Pacific President and CEO Michael Maedel announced the promotion of current CEO of JWT Colombo Thayalan Bartlett to the role of JWT Jakarta Chief Operating Officer.

Assuming the President position at JWT Colombo is Himanshu Saxena who brings with him 18 years experience across advertising, branding, consumer research and sales-contributing to his unique multi-disciplinary business background.

Himanshu’s strategic and creative experience comes from the positions he has held at leading advertising agencies in India: McCann Worldgroup T.A.G., Lowe Lintas, McCann Erickson and Trikaya Grey where he worked on brands such as Unilever, Marico, AT&T, HSBC, Idea Cellular, Mauritius Tourism, Barclays, amongst others.

JWT India CEO Colvyn Harris said, “Thayalan has done an exceptional job in taking the Colombo office to the healthy place it is at today. We are more than confident that with Himanshu’s breadth and depth of experience with top agencies and clients, along with his keen business sense, the office will continue to prosper and grow. We look forward to ushering in a new era at JWT Colombo under Himanshu’s lead.”

Among Himanshu’s many accolades include a Grand India Effie for Saffola which also went on to win an APAC Bronze Effie. In 2007, Himanshu won the Yahoo! Big Idea Chair Award for Parachute Advansed in the category, Best-Integrated Campaign using Digital Media. As COO of Jakarta, Thayalan will fill a new position created by the JWT Jakarta President, Lulut Asmoro, with whom he will work closely. This assignment makes Thayalan the first JWT Sri Lankan CEO to be named Chief Operating Officer of a JWT office internationally.

Thayalan took the helm of JWT Colombo in June 2006. Despite the hardships the country has faced, under Thayalan’s leadership JWT elevated its position and reputation as Sri Lanka’s most sought after and respected agency for its vast client portfolio.

“We are very excited to give Thayalan this opportunity in the Jakarta office,” said Maedel. “This move is a demonstration of JWT’s philosophy on presenting international opportunities to our top talent who can think and operate globally with the goal being to create and deliver more diverse ideas for our offices and our clients,” he said. Himanshu’s appointment is effective July 18, 2011.

He will work together with Thayalan to ensure a smooth transition.