WFA launches Asian Marketing Leaders Program for aspiring regional CMOs

The World Federation of Advertisers (WFA) has launched a new training programme, called the Asian Marketing Leaders Program (AMLP).

The aim is "to equip the next generation of APAC CMOs with the progressive leadership skills they need, with a people-centric focus and an empathetic approach to colleagues, consumers and external partners [and] to understand the unique and diverse challenges of the region and possess the people skills to inspire their teams". 

Formed in partnership with the Asia-focused Human Capital Leadership Institute, the programme is open to marketers and agency staff with 12 to 15 years’ of work experience. It will accept just 30 attendees—80-90% will work for brands—from those who are next in line for regional leadership roles. Firms must nominate candidates before December 20. 

Program details:

• Three modules delivered over eight weeks in intensive, two-to-three day blocks
• 25+ diverse sessions comprising academic lectures and keynote addresses
• Pre-program personal consultation for each participant with one-to-one interviews with the Program team
• Robust inter-session stimulus with individual coaching and content development
• Post-program community check-in to drive engagement and continue the conversation 

The WFA says the content of the AMLP will address many of the gaps in existing marketing executive training, with much of the content based around the missing skills and new priorities identified by WFA’s Marketer of the Future research and from global and regional CMOs.

Specialist priorities will be combined with wider, leadership skills so that learning does not simply skew towards executional excellence. Asian challenges and the region’s influence on the rest of the world will be taken into account.

“Marketing is no longer just about messaging and creativity, it’s about demonstrating the effectiveness of your efforts across multiple channels, platforms and messages," said Raja Rajamannar, president of the WFA and chief marketing and communications officer at Mastercard. "It’s about proving ROI and acting as a business leader not just a marketing leader. The AMLP is a wonderful initiative that will give potential CMOs the tools they need to succeed when they get the top job."
 
David Porter, WFA regional vice-president and vice president of global media at Unilever, added:
“Asia challenges marketers in unique ways and not just because the digital landscape can be very different from other parts of the world. It’s increasingly important for brands to succeed here. As well as being many companies’ main source of growth, APAC is often the birthplace of new technology and the place where new global consumer behaviours begin. The AMLP is a critical step to ensure that our region gives its marketers the capabilities we shall need in the future.”

The 2021 Asian Marketing Leaders Program runs from January 10 until March 8, 2021 with a graduation ceremony planned for WFA Global Marketer Week, which will be held in Singapore from April 20 through 23.