Venkat Mallik to head Tribal DDB and RAPP, India

Along with his prior responsibility of heading RAPP, Mallik will now also look after the digital agency Tribal DDB's India operations.

Venkat Mallik, president, RAPP India, the data driven agency, will now also head Tribal DDB's India operations, the digital agency of the DDB Mudra group.

Speaking about his roles and responsibilities in the two agencies, Mallik says, "Tribal DDB is among the finest digital networks in the world and has a great track record in India. It's exciting to have the mandate to grow RAPP and Tribal DDB, both of which are leading global new age agencies. We plan to scale up both agencies quickly while leveraging synergies between them."

He adds, "The journey with RAPP India has been fabulous until now. We have been able to build a different kind of agency which has specialist practices and has a data lens. Tribal DDB has over 50 offices across the globe. My mandate would be to operate the India operations."

Tribal DDB Asia-Pacific has, over the past four years, seen a substantial growth in its geographical reach.

Talking about his dual responsibility, Mallik says, "Digital is the next big thing in the country with a daily increase in the number of users. We will primarily target three kinds of clients: The global brands which are already connected to Tribal DDB outside India, brands which are already connected to DDB Mudra and need digital services, and target fresh new businesses as part of business development. RAPP, meanwhile, aims at multi channel engagements which are data led."

Speaking about the new structure of the agency, Madhukar Kamath, Group CEO and MD, the Mudra Group says, "With digital advertising acquiring mainstream proportions, it is important to create a leadership structure for Tribal DDB that understands both digital and mainstream brand marketing communications well. With his background in advertising, brand marketing, online gaming, and data and digital communication, Mallik brings a unique combination of skills needed to build Tribal DDB, as well as RAPP at this juncture."

Mallik completed his PGDBM from XLRI in Marketing and Finance in 1986. The early part of his career was spent working at Unilever and JWT and Unilever Beverages. In 1996, he shifted to Euro RSCG as director.

After seven years, in 2003, Mallik joined Leo Burnett as executive director. Then in 2005, he shifted to Level Up! Network as managing director. After four years, in 2009, he joined RAPP as president, India.