Lizelle Maralag announced that she is going to GMA Marketing as President and COO, replacing Meckoy Quiogue who retired at the end of 2009.
Maralag broke the news to her staff on the last working day of December, but kept the industry guessing, until she informed her Integrated Marketing Communications students in UA&P. Though no date has been set, it is reported the transfer will take place soon.
Maralag has been Starcom Mediavest Managing Director since the mid-2000s after a long career with JWT. The media agency recently won Gold for Best Local Campaign and Silver for Best Use of Creative for Unilab’s “Skelan Nationwide Church Invasion” campaign in the first Media Thinking Awards beating entries across Asia Pacific.
Known for her aggressive negotiation skills and no-nonsense attitude, Maralag has been in a number of industry debates and controversies. It should be interesting to see how she fares with Atty. Felipe Gozon, Chief Executive and Chair of GMA Network, who also has a reputation of his own.
She replaces Meckoy Quiogue, who helped bring GMA to the top of the TV ratings in the Greater Manila Area. Observers have wondered who could possibly be big enough to fill his shoes, but Maralag’s larger-than-life personality and business acumen should make her a shoe-in.
