SINGAPORE - Singapore Press Holdings (SPH) has appointed Mr Ignatius Low, 45, as the firm's chief marketing officer.
He succeeds Ms Elsie Chua, 56, with immediate effect. Ms Chua, who is staying on till June 2018 to ensure a smooth transition for SPH's key advertising clients and partners, has decided to retire after 20 years at the company.
The appointment was announced at a company townhall meeting on Wednesday (April 11). Mr Low, who was appointed head of media solutions in Sept 2016, will fully take over Ms Chua's responsibilities on her last day of service in June.
Noting the challenges facing the industry, Mr Low said: "The media landscape may have become more competitive and fragmented than ever before, but I believe many of our advertising clients still see great value in investing in SPH's quality platforms and audiences.
"Our job is to clearly define that value, and update our approach and solutions to meet today's evolving demands."
Mr Low will lead SPH's integrated marketing division, which was set up to enable the marketing team to offer advertisers integrated marketing solutions across multiple platforms.
On Tuesday (April 10), the media and property group reported a 1.4 per cent increase in net profit to $100.62 million for the six months ended Feb 28.
SPH deputy CEO Anthony Tan said he is confident that Mr Low will continue to build a strong value proposition for the company's advertising partners and accelerate SPH's growth in a digital-first environment.
Thanking Ms Chua for her years of service, Mr Tan noted her stewardship over the past few years as the company transitioned to offering multi-platform advertising solutions to meet the changing demands of the market.
"She is a media industry veteran who has helmed everything from print display and classified sales to outdoor advertising and content marketing," he added.
Ms Chua, who will be helping with the transition in the meantime, said: "It has been a good 20 years riding out several peaks and troughs in SPH. The opportunity is ripe for me to let go and move on to have more control of my time, smell the roses, see the world, give back to the community and learn new things."
As a past president of the Pandan Valley Rotary Club, one of her retirement plans is to spend more time on service projects as an assistant governor for several other rotary clubs.
