Vienna, Vienna, Austria
I am a Managing Director and turnaround-focused CEO currently leading Cheil Austria and Cheil Hungary, with regional responsibility across Switzerland, Austria, Hungary, and the Baltic region. I have built and restructured marketing, commerce, and service businesses across Asia-Pacific and Europe, working with global clients including Samsung in complex, multi-market environments. Previously, I founded and scaled Cheil New Zealand, taking the agency from inception to a fully operational business with USD 4M annual revenue and 36+ employees. I served as the primary account lead for Samsung, establishing long-term client partnerships while building a scalable operating model and high-performing team. I was then appointed to take over Cheil Austria and Hungary, two structurally challenged European entities, with a mandate to stabilize operations, restore financial discipline, and rebuild profitable, scalable operating models across the region. My focus is not on running comfortable organizations, but on fixing complex ones aligning cost structures, rebalancing client portfolios, rebuilding sales pipelines, and turning global client relationships into strong local P&L. I specialize in situations where strong brands and blue-chip clients exist, but operational discipline, margin, and growth need to be rebuilt across multiple countries.
Leading the turnaround of Cheil Austria and Cheil Hungary, with regional responsibility across Switzerland, Austria, Hungary, and the Baltic states. My role focuses on transforming structurally challenged agencies into profitable, scalable businesses. Key responsibilities include: 1) Business strategy redesign – Diagnosing current operations and defining turnaround strategies. 2) Cost structure optimization – Streamlining headcount, overhead, and operational expenses to improve profitability. 3) Client portfolio rebalancing – Enhancing client satisfaction while diversifying and prioritizing high-margin accounts. 4) Transition to a profitable operational model – Building scalable processes, team structures, and workflows. 5) Rebuilding sales pipeline and financial discipline – Developing new business opportunities and expanding internal capabilities to drive revenue growth while maintaining healthy cost control. This approach ensures sustainable growth, stronger client relationships, and a fully optimized P&L across multiple markets.
Concurrent responsibility for Cheil Hungary under the regional leadership mandate covering Austria, Switzerland, Hungary, and the Baltic region.
Founded and scaled Cheil New Zealand from inception into a fully operational marketing and commerce agency, achieving USD 4M annual revenue and 36+ employees. Key achievements: 1) Established the agency’s operations, processes, and team from scratch. 2) Built long-term partnerships with global clients, including Samsung, serving as the primary account lead. 3) Designed and implemented a scalable operating model, ensuring profitability and sustainable growth in a competitive market. 4) Recruited and developed cross-functional teams to deliver integrated marketing, digital, and commerce solutions.
The Connection Business Team was recently established with the goal of gaining expertise and generating successful cases in eCommerce and data-driven marketing. Through a competitive pitch, the team successfully secured the Samsung online store as a client and commenced a partnership with Samsung Mobile, providing planning and creative support for their eCommerce endeavors. Additionally, the team collaborated with a data-driven marketing unit to develop a global guideline for launching mobile flagships. As the team leader, my responsibilities encompassed client service, ensuring the delivery of high-quality offerings, team management, and P&L management. In 2018, we achieved a remarkable 125% of the annual target revenue.
Cheil established the Digital Strategy team with the objective of augmenting digital marketing capabilities and enhancing client satisfaction. As the senior digital strategist, my role involved diagnosing existing issues and providing well-founded business-level proposals. Key projects undertaken included developing a digital transformation strategy for MVIO (Samsung Fashion), devising an eCommerce launching strategy for WA.com (Samsung IM), formulating social media strategies and managing operations for Samsung Notebook and Samsung Pay, as well as creating a digital content strategy for Hankook Tire, among others.
Upon joining Cheil France, my primary objective was to strengthen the digital capabilities and identify business opportunities within the digital and retail sectors. In this role, I served as a vital connection between local teams and our extensive European network, collaborating on various projects. Additionally, I took charge of constructing a comprehensive business plan to provide strategic support to the management of Cheil France.
As a digital marketing specialist, my responsibilities encompassed overseeing domestic digital marketing activities, including planning, creative development, media management, and overall campaign operations. Through our efforts, we achieved significant sales growth and consistently delivered campaign results that surpassed previous performance benchmarks. Following my successful tenure in domestic digital marketing, I transitioned to the global division, where I assumed responsibility for executing global digital campaigns on behalf of LG Electronics. These campaigns spanned across more than ten overseas markets and covered a diverse range of products, including laptops, TVs, monitors, and network storage solutions. Client: LG Electronics (Laptop, TV, Monitor, and Network Storage)