Women to Watch 2024: Lydia Adlina, Starcom

Lydia Adlina

General manager
Gov@Publicis
Singapore

In a career spanning 15 years, Lydia Adlina has worked across some of the most competitive agencies in the PR industry, pushing boundaries and finding new ways to drive growth through emerging channels.

After nearly a decade at Starcom, today Adlina leads Gov@Publicis, the dedicated Master Media Agency (MMA) for the Singapore Whole of Government (WOG), overseeing media billings totalling S$80 million. With a sharp sense of humour, grace and determination to leave an impact, Adlina juggles the needs of over 50 ministries and agencies. Testament to her ability to deliver innovative solutions with a creative edge, she has significantly expanded Gov@Publicis’ remit beyond media by embracing new frontiers like gaming and the metaverse, and keeping government communications innovative and relevant.

An example of these innovations is SG Farm Tycoon on Roblox, developed in partnership with Publicis Play. Focused on food security, this metaverse game attracted thousands of users with an engagement time far above the APAC average, and showcased new ways to engage young audiences. Another initiative was the ‘For Real Co’ campaign, created with Leo Burnett for the Ministry of Social and Family Development. Aimed at strengthening relationships among Singaporean youth, the campaign combined data-driven insights with creative execution to generate millions of impressions and views for an event that attracted thousands of visitors. Consequently, under Adlina's leadership, Gov@Publicis’ evaluation scores mirrored this success in 2024, and exceeded expectations across media planning, buying and accountability. 

As a leader, Adlina lives by the 'work hard, play hard' ethos. She keeps her team sharp with regular training workshops and encourages hands-on experience through new business pitches. Simultaneously, she fosters a fun, tight-knit culture with activities outside of work like hikes, art jamming, and pottery.

Adlina has made it her mission to champion women in the workplace and provide opportunities for local talent. At Gov@Publicis, she built a leadership team affectionately called the GALS—a playful nod to her all-female Groupe account leads. She is also a passionate sustainability advocate, committed to raising awareness and laying the groundwork for eco-friendly advertising in the long term. She has championed sustainability by introducing clients to tools like Alice (Advertising Limiting Impacts & Carbon Emissions), promoting sustainable media practices that align with long-term environmental goals.

In addition, Adlina is a force in shaping thought leadership in government communications. She has co-led Gov Day, an annual event for WOG that unites public communications officers from over 50 ministries and agencies. A direct result of Gov Day was developing the SG Food Tycoon game on Roblox.

Outside of work, Adlina is actively involved in volunteer work and is raising funds to deliver clean water to Palestine. She also channels her passion for cooking into a small private catering business called Flying Feline, a playful nod to her self-proclaimed title as a 'crazy cat lady' who lovingly cares for her five adopted and happily thriving cats.