BBC Advertising, part of BBC Worldwide, the commercial arm of the BBC, has announced the appointment of Alistair McEwan as senior vice president commercial development Asia & ANZ.
McEwan will be responsible for the delivery of profitable advertising sales revenues from the Asia-Pacific region on BBC World News, BBC.com, BBC World Service, Top Gear, BBC Good Food and BBC Worldwide Channels.
Reporting to Carolyn Gibson, EVP BBC Advertising, McEwan will also remain part of the ANZ leadership team under Jon Penn, managing director, BBC Worldwide ANZ and join the Asia leadership team under David Weiland, EVP & GM Asia.
He will play a strategic role in integrating the regional advertising teams and optimising opportunities across BBC Worldwide and BBC Global News Ltd’s portfolio, while building the business’ profile across Asia-Pacific. He will also provide sales and business leadership to his senior management team of sales vice presidents, whilst further developing the capabilities of the high calibre sales team across the region.
This builds on the announcement last September that BBC Worldwide is boosting its ad sales team in Asia to make the most of growth opportunities in the region. VPs John Williams and Katy Xu will continue to run sales and day to day line management of their teams in ASEAN & India and Greater China & North Asia respectively, while both reporting to McEwan. The current ANZ ad sales and brand partnerships team will continue to report to McEwan.
The role takes effect on 1 July 2015 and McEwan will work from both the Singapore and Sydney offices.
Carolyn Gibson, EVP BBC Advertising, said: “For this expanded, strategic role, which is responsible for the whole of BBC Worldwide and BBC Global News Ltd’s portfolio across the region, we were looking for someone who can lead and integrate the teams and drive new commercial opportunities. With his knowledge from working in markets across Asia and ANZ, as well as a mix of print, TV and digital experience, Alistair will be an excellent asset to the BBC Advertising leadership team.”
McEwan commented: “Asia-Pacific is a dynamic and very important region for BBC Worldwide, where we are increasingly building audiences with our world-class content and services in both mature and fast growth markets. I’m incredibly excited by the scope of business opportunities across the region, fostering new and existing partnerships and leading a highly talented sales team.”
