New IAB CEO Vijay Solanki has his feet firmly under the table, having made a batch of fresh appointments within the organisation's video, tech, mobile and measurement hubs.
The trade association for online advertising now has Ben Sharp, managing director ANZ at AdRoll, as the IAB Technology Council chairperson; Suzie Cardwell, digital partnerships and product development director at MCN, as head of the IAB Video Council; Heather White, head of audience insights at News Corp Australia, as chairperson of the IAB Measurement Council and Rick Knott, regional director APAC at mobile video ad firm Celtra, as head of the IAB Mobile Council.
A meeting of minds
Former digital marketer Solanki made the new appointments at an IAB Council Refresh event in Sydney, which, surprisingly, was the first time that all IAB councils have come together to share and discuss their plans.
“The IAB digital councils are the lifeblood of IAB Australia’s activity and it is critical for our future effectiveness that we work collaboratively to produce valuable policy and initiatives that take our industry forward,” Solanki said.
“It was fantastic to bring the councils together for the first time and see the energy and renewed focus that we need. I’m looking forward to sharing the refreshed council’s strategic roadmaps over the coming months.”
The new team join Standards and Guidelines Council head Jon Moffat, who is commercial digital operations director at Fairfax, and Audio Council chairperson Rick Gleave, the director business development and partnerships at Pandora.
The team has several challenges ahead, including tackling a host of industry issues such as transparency and viewability - particularly given how the rapid rise of advertising on smartphones and tablets has powered the fastest growth of Australia’s online advertising market for five years, according to the latest IAB/PwC Online Advertising Expenditure Report.
The Refresh event saw more than 50 attendees, including senior figures from companies such as Google, Telstra, GroupM, Yahoo7, AOL, MCN, SCA, Fairfax, News Limited, TubeMogul, Brightcove and AdRoll participate in shaping the future activity of the councils and the IAB.
The Council Refresh is part of Solanki’s First50 Tour which has seen him meet with more than 50 organisations and stakeholders in the digital industry to better craft the IAB’s renewed proposition and strategy.
In March, AdNews reported that IAB CEO Alice Manners would step down from the organisation in May as her three-year tenure came to an end. Manners resurfaced at one of Perth's leading agencies, Marketforce.
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