MANILA, PHILIPPINES – Omnicom Media Group (OMG) Asia-Pacific CEO Tony Harradine is always on the move.
Being in charge of a geographically massive and culturally diverse region, after all, necessitates a life on the road.
“When you run a region as the magnitude of Asia-Pacific in terms of the diversity and the breadth of it, it could be overwhelming,” Tony told adobo Magazine, who finds himself traveling every two to three weeks of each month overseeing OMG APAC’s operations, which spans 17 countries across the region.
Few things match the frenetic pace of Tony’s work dynamic more than the media industry itself — a rapidly and constantly evolving landscape. Digital media has evolved by leaps and bounds over the past decade, and even more so in the past few years, where the industry has been transformed by seismic shifts, from increasingly fragmented media channels to artificial intelligence at the forefront of these conversations today.
The APAC region is far from being a monolith, with its own local intricacies and complexities. Yet Tony attributes the success in each market and across the region to prioritization and building strong teams that deliver in a “divide-and-conquer” approach.
“I know I’ve got great teams both across the markets and in the regional headquarters. We’re very good at dividing and conquering in terms of the priorities of the day … prioritization, perspective, and organization really is the key,” he shared.
Seven years into the role, Tony continues to approach the role with insatiable hunger, one that continues to keep him on his toes amid a fast-paced industry.
“The beauty of the industry is that we are on the cusp of innovation all the time. You look at a lot of the great technological advancements that are happening in the world today – marketing, advertising, communications is always at the cusp of that … it doesn’t stop, to be honest. That always keeps me intrigued. It keeps me sharp, there’s always something to learn,” he said.
This is especially true as AI continues to take hold of the industry, adding: “What I love about this industry is the fact that you’ve got to keep re-educating yourself every two to three years. Now, what felt like every two to three years feels like every two to three weeks [at this point],” he shared.
Aside from keeping abreast of the technological innovations within the industry, seeing these changes on the ground and checking in with various markets is also paramount for Tony, which partly explains his on-the-go lifestyle.
“I love getting out in the market, seeing the teams getting on with the clients … I also like to be out there meeting clients and meeting the vendors as well, hearing what’s going on. It’s never a dull moment,” he shared.
adobo Magazine sat down with Tony, who shared his insights on emerging trends in the region, and the brand of leadership and work ethic that it takes to thrive in this fast-changing landscape.
adobo Magazine: We see the media landscape rapidly changing. What are some of the most notable trends that you have observed, and how is OMG adapting to those?
Tony Harradine: Everybody talks about AI. So GEO (Generative Engine Optimization) is going to be a fundamental shift for a lot of businesses to have to think about. In terms of consumer behavior, we’re seeing a big change now, a shift from search-based queries with ranked options to more gen AI-based queries through things like ChatGPT.
With that comes the importance of branding, because the way that brands are surfaced will fundamentally change again. Many markets within Asia have historically been more geared towards a performance mindset, so we will see a gravitation or more of an equilibrium back to brand and performance as opposed to the immediacy of performance return-on-investment (ROI) metrics. Branding is going to play a massive part again for a lot of companies as a result of changing behaviors in the way that these brands have surfaced.
Next, Asia has always led the charge in retail and commerce — that continues to be a big area. We’re seeing a massive shift of client spend towards commerce, with the biggest global brands doubling down in that regard towards more commerce-led strategies. This needs to be the case, as with a lot of lower barriers to entry for emerging brands, these big brands need to be at the forefront of this and able to stay competitive.
Influencer marketing continues to be strong, which again, Asia-Pacific leads the charge globally in that regard. This move to get very sharp and targeted consumer attention — whether it’s nano or micro-influencers — is a big trend that is very established in the region, but we’re starting to see it occur more frequently globally as well.
adobo Magazine: What opportunities are you seeing in the influencer marketing space?
Tony: There’s a lot that we are doing here that the rest of our business would be learning from us globally. We launched Creo (an end-to-end creator and influencer marketing solution) globally, which aggregates several different influencer capabilities and data, and is landing very well for us here. We’ve always had degrees of that capability, but now it’s more of an industrialized, cohesive platform.
We’ve always been particularly strong in that regard specifically in the Philippines because the country has been a pioneer. The standout markets really have been China, Philippines, and Thailand for me in this space. I think that’s an area of great excitement and growth for us.
adobo Magazine: You mentioned brand and performance marketing. How do you advise your brands, your clients nowadays to balance both in the region?
Tony: Every client is different, but routing back to measurement frameworks to ascertain the right mix and spread of channel spend is key.
I’d like to think that OMG pioneered a lot of advanced measurement capabilities globally and here in Asia early on. An approach that’s more three-dimensional to measurement is key, whether it’s channel data, media data, one’s own business data metrics, or social data — all of that coming together in a cohesive three-dimensional measurement framework is always a good starting point. It gives you some kind of baseline to work from.
I think the mistake that a lot of brands make is the window in which they’re measuring. It’s often a short window in time to try and get some immediacy of insight as to where it is. The longer you extend it out, the more robust the measurement framework is to be able to then determine what impact it’s having on your longer-term brand credentials and sustainability of brand measurement. One of those big lessons to clients at the moment is to elongate that measurement period for longer to enable you to be able to do that sort of assessment.
adobo Magazine: Are there any industry sectors that particularly come to mind in terms of how you’ve helped your clients adapt to these trends and conventions?
Tony: We’re doing a lot of work in the travel space right now, especially with geospatial tech, since that’s a big area for airlines and hotels in how they get surfaced. We’re also pioneering and leading the way as this area evolves — it’s cutting-edge stuff, which is exciting. We’re also doing great work in fashion and beauty with influencers. Those brands have really been the pioneers in that space.
Then, circling back to geospatial, we’re also big in banking, finance, and fintech, we’ve got a lot of clients in that space.
We’re also especially strong in automotive across the region. With electric vehicles coming on strong, car brands that have been around forever, built on their intellectual property and engineering credentials, are facing new pressures. EVs level the playing field since everyone’s starting fresh. So, how do you keep those legacy brands out front when you’ve got fast, agile upstarts from China? That’s a big challenge we’re tackling.
adobo Magazine: What do you see are the opportunities and challenges for brands in APAC today?
Tony: The proliferation of channels is a big challenge for brands. The age-old approach to branding was quite simple — you had a more limited array of channels to impact, whether it’s TV or out-of-home, for example, but it made for easier decisions.
Today, it’s so diverse and proliferated that making sense of it all for clients is tougher — overcoming fragmentation in terms of messaging and building branding at scale. But I always say, the more complex and proliferated the industry becomes, the more vital we become as a service partner. I respect the complexity and fragmentation of the media landscape because it reinforces the importance of our role as trusted advisors, guiding clients with clarity, confidence and creativity. That’s why we’re there. We’re there to help converge all of this data, all of these opportunities to make sense of it all for clients. It may be [a] big challenge, but it’s also a big opportunity for us as agents.
adobo Magazine: Fragmented channels are a thorn in the side of a lot of brands, but as you mentioned, there’s a lot of opportunity. Where does AI enter that picture?
Tony: We invested early in AI capability to support that journey. Whether it’s through planning, like surfacing insights, AI plays a massive role there. Back in the day, we’d rely on research and teams of people to surface those insights, and it’d take weeks, sometimes months, to pull out those gems we’d give to clients as the backbone of their planning and campaign activations. Now, with smart, sophisticated technology through AI, such as large language models, we’re surfacing those insights in a matter of minutes or hours, which is great.
On the planning side, there’s real value to AI. It’s not replacing humans — that’s a key point. It’s empowering them to do the job quicker and, frankly, giving them more time to focus on higher-value parts of the day instead of drowning in data points and research.
On the buying side, through capabilities our media and tech partners like Meta, TikTok, or Google are building, when you’re looking at audiences, inventory, curation, and selection, AI plays a massive part there too. It lets you optimize and curate audiences for much more targeted, effective media activations. So, on both sides — planning and buying — AI’s got a huge role powered by humans. It’s a huge enabler to do the work quicker and better.
adobo Magazine: How else are you capitalizing on these opportunities for your clients to support their needs?
Tony: We’re focused on stitching together various capabilities to ladder up to a broader, cohesive strategic purpose. A key consideration is ensuring these capabilities work together seamlessly, so it’s not just an isolated commerce campaign, an isolated above-the-line campaign, or an isolated event management effort. That’s where our Omni open operating system comes in. It’s about bringing those capabilities together, which I think is critical.
It’s also about how we collaborate, not just within Omnicom Media Group but with our agency partners too, like BBDO, TBWA, or the many other businesses in the Omnicom fold — whether in PR, precision marketing, or other areas. We bring this to life through a concept we call “Agency as a Platform.” We serve as the client’s entry point, stitching together these diverse, highly specialized capabilities into a cohesive strategy. Clients don’t want to juggle 15 different teams. So, we leverage technology, teams, and people through a common interface to deliver a unified, integrated solution.
adobo Magazine: Omnicom Media Group works with some of the largest companies in the world. What does it take to manage a successful client-agency relationship?
Tony: Clients’ needs are getting more complex, and so are their ecosystems. The advertising world itself is increasingly intricate. We’ve already touched on market fragmentation with channel proliferation, but there’s also growing complexity within clients’ businesses as they integrate PR, communications, technology, infrastructure, and CRM. All of this adds layers of complexity.
When we’re pitching for a client, renewing a contract, or extending one, a key discussion is how our relationship evolves over two, three, or four years. The rise of AI is driving some of that need for evolution in how we service clients, but it’s really about how we operationalize and build a servicing model tailored to their needs, and every client is different. Some want highly centralized operating models, especially in multi-market scenarios. For others, we discuss whether centralized hubs are necessary or if a more federal, market-by-market approach makes sense versus a centralized hub with centers of excellence. These are the kinds of conversations we need to unpack.
adobo Magazine: As you mentioned, you work with a lot of agency partners. How do you see Omnicom’s role as a co-creator and how does that set your client up for success?
Tony: We’ve evolved into co-creators in many ways. It’s no longer just about taking a brief and executing it. Now, we operate in a more consultative role, and that’s the expectation across everything we do — whether it’s advising on content strategies or channel mix. Our best and longest-running client partnerships are those where we’re true business partners, sitting side by side with clients. We go beyond the specific task we were hired for, helping shape their overall sales strategy, for instance.
For some clients, we have a significant role in product development, contributing to product innovation, co-creating, and future-proofing their strategies — whether it’s entering a new market, launching a new SKU, or refining distribution. It’s exciting to be part of that because we’re contributing to their business transformation, not just digital transformation but how they position themselves in a market and define their sales strategy. It’s really rewarding to play that kind of role.
adobo Magazine: With the myriad of changes happening in this industry, what do you think are the most important qualities for leaders nowadays?
Tony: When we look at senior leadership roles in our business, I think a degree of generalism is crucial. Leaders need to know a lot about many things, which is no small feat. There’s a big expectation for them to understand AI, measurement, planning, trading, and the broader business landscape. Having strong business acumen and the ability to cover a wide range of topics is key, especially when engaging with clients. It’s no longer just about GRPs or channel mix — they want to discuss real business outcomes and solutions to actual business problems. That’s our core goal: helping businesses transform and deliver meaningful solutions.
Of course, this is underpinned by having a team of deep-level specialists to handle the various capabilities we bring to clients. But as you rise through the ranks, becoming more T-shaped — deep in one area but broad across many — is essential. If I had to sum it up, adaptability is the key quality leaders need today.
adobo Magazine: What are things you’re excited about for OMG in the coming year?
Tony: There’s always something new on the horizon, especially with the technological developments and internal evolutions. We talk a lot about guiding clients through digital transformation, but we’ve got to do the same for ourselves to stay ahead. We need to make sure our own house is in order before we help tidy up others, right? So, our own digital and business transformation journey is really exciting.You’re probably aware of the seismic event in our world — the acquisition of IPG. That’s huge and thrilling to be part of. It’s going to bring a whole new breadth of talent and capability. Omnicom already has a lot to offer, but adding more is fantastic. IPG has a great team and some impressive assets, like their data platform Acxiom, which I’m really curious to learn more about how that will integrate with our Omni capability. I think it could be something powerful.
