MANILA – Y&R Philippines welcomes Anna Testa as its new chief executive officer starting June 1, replacing Mary Buenaventura who has moved on to Omnicom Media Group.
Testa comes from Leo Burnett Singapore, where she has been global brand director for P&G brand SK-II for the last two years. Her career spans over 2 decades, 11 of which are with Leo Burnett.
Her last role in the Philippines was account management director for Mc Donald’s Philippines back in 2003. She now returns to Manila for the role and will be reporting to Sanjay Bhasin, CEO, Y&R Southeast Asia.
“Anna brings a wealth of experience to the role and we are delighted to welcome her on board,” said Bhasin. “We’re sad to bid Mary farewell but wish her the very best in her new role. I know that Y&R Philippines will only continue to grow under Anna’s leadership and look forward to achieving continued success with her,” Bhasin said.
Basin praised Buenaventura’s massive contribution during her 13 year stay, with Y&R Philippines posting a record 80 percent growth in new business in 2014.
“Mary has certainly set the bar high and her many achievements will be a tough act to follow, but I look forward to the challenge,” said Anna.
“The breadth of services of Y&R Philippines is impressive, from branding to shopper to activation to digital. And they even have a Cannes Lion under their belt. I’m very excited to be working with them and am certain there will only be many more wins ahead,” she adds.
Testa was referring to the ‘Anti-Dengue Bottle’, a project for Maynilad Water Services in partnership with Department of Health (DOH) in 2013 – Y&R’s first ever Cannes Lions.
