Gary Koeb

๐Ÿš€๐——๐—ถ๐—ด๐—ถ๐˜๐—ฎ๐—น ๐—™๐—ถ๐—ฟ๐˜€๐˜ ๐—š๐—ฟ๐—ผ๐˜„๐˜๐—ต ๐——๐—ฟ๐—ถ๐˜ƒ๐—ฒ๐—ฟ โ•‘ Ex Virgin Mobile, STC, TeliaSonera โ•‘ Chief Marketing Officer (CMO, CCO & CXO) โ•‘ Saudi Arabia, UAE, GCC, SE Asia, CIS & Beyond

Dubai, Dubai, United Arab Emirates

About

๐Ÿš€Digital First, Growth-Oriented CEO/CMO/CCO | T-Shaped Marketer and Data-Driven Strategist | Innovative Brand Builder | Passionate about Driving Revenue Growth ๐Ÿ’ผ My purpose is to develop digital highways that bridge people, enhance livelihoods, promote social equity, and to be a catalyst for positive change, thus laying the foundation for a more prosperous and interconnected world. Driven to innovate; build great customer experiences with a Digital First approach; grow market share; improve speed to revenue; and drive shareholder value. Iโ€™m a results-oriented, marketing professional with strong EQ-driven leadership and strategy execution skills. Energetic, passionate and ready to move markets in Telco, FinTech and beyond. With experience in large corporates, small startups, B2C, B2B, consulting and the agency side, I know how to design and execute aggressive Go To Market Strategies and lead teams through fast-paced and uncharted waters. Letโ€™s talk about some results (none of which were achieved solo, Iโ€™m a leader that recognizes that any successes I have, come because I have a strong team next to me): โ€ข Fastest Growing Retail Bank in the UAE โ€ข Digital MVNO of the Year โ€ข Best MVNO in Saudi Arabia โ€ข Most Customer Centric MVNO in Saudi Arabia โ€ข TBC Bank Branch of the Future โ€ข Brand Brilliance Awards (Most Innovative Team, Best Social Campaign, Best Brand Campaign) Donโ€™t like industry awards and recognition? Ok, how about these: โ€ข Increased ARPU by 4x and overall Revenue Growth of 5.3x in three years โ€ข Grew Digital Activations by 3.9x โ€ข Improved retention in core segments by 1.8x โ€ข Increased CVM/BTL Revenue contribution by 4x โ€ข Integrated OTT Services, resulting in 50% of New Activations adopting the plans โ€ข Contributed to a 5.5x Revenue Increase in Medium/Large Plan Performance โ€ข Achieved an 8x increase in Brand Top of Mind Awareness โ€ข Enhanced Effective Brand Equity by 5x โ€ข Improved Brand Desire by 3.3x Special emphasis on Digital Growth Strategies, Brand Portfolio Strategy, Customer Value Management, Pricing, Youth Marketing, Big Data Analytics, CX, UX, UI, and Sales Distribution Channels. Deep regional market expertise in Saudi Arabia (KSA), United Arab Emirates (UAE), Kuwait, Bahrain, Eastern Europe, former Soviet Union (Georgia, Moldova, Ukraine, Lithuania, Uzbekistan, Tajikistan and Kyrgyzstan) and Southeast Asia (Laos, Cambodia, Vietnam and Nepal).

Experience

  • Chief Executive Officer at Axiomera Partners Ltd.
    Jan 2025 - Present ยท 1 yr 6 mos

    I head up Axiomera Partners, a consulting firm comprised of c-level execs from Tier 1 Operators, Banks and Fintechs. We focus on strategic finance, IT, and marketing innovation to drive transformative growth. We help clients build internal capabilities, integrate digital and analytics tools into their organizations, and transform the ways in which they work to improve their business in substantial and sustainable ways.

  • Senior Partner, Marketing Strategy & Innovation at Experto Consulting
    Dec 2023 - Present ยท 2 yrs 7 mos

    Currently working to expand and optimize marketing for several private investments, while exploring new opportunities in the GCC (and beyond) where I can leverage my experience in Mobile Telecommunications, Banking, Fintech and Digital Transformation. Engaged with several start-ups as Angel Investor, Coach and Mentor. Active blogger, thought leader, influencer and consultant. Working to shape the discourse around Digital Performance Marketing, Brand Management, Sustainability and Emotionally Aware Leadership.

  • Executive Vice President, Head of Marketing at RAKBANK
    Apr 2023 - Nov 2023 ยท 8 mos

    Led strategic initiatives to enhance the Bank's Brand; build Customer Engagement; improve Customer Acquisition; and drive Digital Transformation. Through data-driven insights and innovative campaigns, I optimized RAKBANK's brand growth, customer advocacy, digital transformation, lead generation and hyper-personalization efforts. In the short time since I joined RAKBANK, my leadership approach empowered the Marketing Organization to reach its fullest potential through a collaborative, trust-based business culture. It was this team spirit that fueled our 2023 efforts and helped us win the "Fastest Growing Retail Bank UAE 2023" award by World Economic Magazine Inc. โ€ข Spearheaded an innovative Brand Architecture and soon-to-be-announced Brand Refresh, designed to improve the Bankโ€™s positioning with key aspirational targets such as, Emiratis, Western Expats, Abu Dhabi locals and large-scale corporate customers in alignment with the Bankโ€™s Growth Strategy. โ€ข Cultivated a loyal customer base through Digital First, omnichannel campaigns based on Marketing Analytics and deep Customer Insights, designed to boost engagement and stimulate the Customer Acquisition Funnel. โ€ข Forged seamless partnerships with new Creative and Media agencies, igniting open communication and a collaborative spirit, which amplified campaign effectiveness leading to a faster, more responsive Marketing Organization serving business stakeholders with greater efficiency and building stronger internal confidence. โ€ข Worked with our Digital Transformation Teams to revamp customer journey touchpoints and digital onboarding paths for new customers to join the Bank more simply, quickly and easily leading to improved conversion rates and lower acquisition costs. In short, I was focused on taking RAKBANK from a mid-sized, mid-market SME bank, to a cutting-edge Digital Bank with a Human Touch along with a much more diversified and loyal customer base.

  • Virgin Mobile Middle East & Africa (Riyadh, Saudi Arabia)
    • Senior Commercial Director, Virgin Mobile KSA (Saudi Arabia Mobile)
      Dec 2019 - Apr 2023 ยท 3 yrs 5 mos

      Directed the Growth Strategy for the Virgin Mobile Business in Saudi Arabia (KSA), which lead to our recognition as the Best Digital MVNO at the prestigious MVNO World Congress in 2022. Areas of focus included Marketing, Brand Management, Pricing/Proposition, Digital Experience & Innovation, Customer Value Management (CVM), Channel Operations, and Distribution Strategy. โ€ข Primary role was to create new ways to "Make Mobile Better" while driving incredible growth and customer satisfaction numbers in one of the most competitive and challenging markets in the world. Virgin Digital Customers in Saudi Arabia grew by 3.6x. Digital Plan ARPU exploded by 4x, leading to an overall Revenue Growth of 5.3x. โ€ข Overall Brand Awareness increased 3.5x from 2018 to 2022, driving head-to-head comparisons to market competitors spending ten times as much. Likewise, Consideration among Saudi customers showed strong growth of 2.8x during the same period. โ€ข Established the organizationโ€™s CVM Strategy and Organization, covering the full Customer Lifecycle Management Process, including Onboarding, Winback, Inactivity Prevention, Recharge Stimulation, Dropout Management, and Churn Prediction. Served as Executive Sponsor for Big Data Programs, including Data Science, AI and Data Lake initiatives. Achieved a 9% Incremental Revenue Contribution through CVM. Campaign conversions increased 6x from 2020 to 2022. โ€ข Created strategic partnerships with OSN, STARZ Play, Anghami and others, integrating their OTT Services into Virgin Mobileโ€™s Proposition and Digital Experience. Adoption of these plans surpassed 50% and helped drive a 5.5x Revenue Increase of Medium/Large Plan (100 SAR+) Performance and had a material positive impact on NPS, Customer Satisfaction and Retention. #VirginMobile, #marketing_in_saudi, #telco_marketer, #digital_transformation, #fintech, #value_management, #digital_marketing, #performance_marketing ================================== Acquired by Beyond One in 2022.

    • Senior Marketing Director, Virgin Mobile KSA (Saudi Arabia Mobile)
      Apr 2018 - Dec 2019 ยท 1 yr 9 mos

  • Sr. Managing Partner at EXPERTO Consulting
    Jun 2015 - Apr 2018 ยท 2 yrs 11 mos

    Experto Consulting is a thought leader in facilitating business and trade with a focus on the CIS, Middle East and Eurasia. We unlock regional markets and enable the business aspirations of our clients in some of the most challenging places to do business. Also involved in asset recovery, business turnaround and creating new investment opportunities.