Mumbai, Maharashtra, India, December 2025 — Dheeraj Sinha has taken charge as CEO of McCann Worldgroup India, in what is widely regarded as one of the most consequential leadership transitions following the global Omnicom–Interpublic (IPG) merger. His appointment positions him at the forefront of shaping the combined holding company’s India strategy at a moment when the broader creative industry is undergoing one of its largest realignments in recent decades. With the newly integrated global structure consolidating several legacy agency brands, McCann Worldgroup emerges as a retained flagship within the reorganized creative ecosystem — now led by Sinha as the organisation navigates the next phase of growth, integration, and creative excellence.
In the most recent phase of his career, Dheeraj served as Group CEO – India & South Asia at FCB, where he focused on building the country’s largest future‑led, full‑funnel agency network. He led a transformation anchored in Growth, Glory, and Guts, significantly accelerating new‑business momentum with marquee wins including KFC, Adidas, Angel One and Hero Motors. He launched future‑focused platforms such as 456 Studios and FCB Now, and strengthened the network’s talent engine by hiring 100 “StarOnes” in 2025 and establishing the FCB Academy to upscale teams on AI‑enabled creativity. Under his leadership, FCB India achieved major creative success — including 10 Lions at Cannes Lions 2025, a Grand Prix, multiple Golds, and over 41 awards at Abby One Show, firmly positioning the network among the most awarded in India and globally.
Before this, Dheeraj held a series of pivotal leadership roles at Publicis Groupe, notably as CEO – Leo Burnett South Asia and Chairman – BBH India. His vision to transform Leo Burnett into India’s No.1 new‑age agency was realised as the organisation doubled revenue, increased new‑age client contributions to 30%, and became the top‑ranked Indian agency at Cannes Lions, One Show, AdFest, D&AD and APAC Effies. He oversaw a sweeping transformation across five Publicis Groupe agencies, introduced digital‑first talent systems, and led one of the largest business wins in Indian advertising — the signing of PepsiCo India’s 15+ brand portfolio. During this period, he also consolidated BBH India into a top‑two global office, and expanded Publicis Business and Publicis Health into category‑leading offerings.
Earlier, Dheeraj spent close to six years with Grey Group across South & Southeast Asia, where he built a powerful strategy network, led major regional new‑business wins including Maybank and Telecom Malaysia, and won multiple Effies and the prestigious WPP Atticus Award for best published thinking. Prior to that, his contributions at Bates spanned strategic transformation through the ChangeEngage philosophy, large‑scale workshops across Asia, and authoring his widely recognised books on the Indian consumer — Consumer India and India Reloaded. His impact extended across thought leadership, regional strategy, and award‑winning brand work for clients across Asia.
In the earlier years of his career, Dheeraj worked across leadership roles in planning and strategy at Euro RSCG (Havas) and McCann Erickson, as well as PSL McCann. He handled iconic brands such as Emirates Airlines, Red FM (“Bajate Raho”), MasterCard, LG, Panasonic, Reckitt Benckiser brands (Dettol, Harpic, Lizol, Colin), ITC Foods and several others — shaping his foundation as one of India’s leading consumer and brand strategists. He also contributed to cultural insight projects, multi‑country youth studies, and successful new‑business pitches that helped establish his early reputation in the industry. These foundational roles built the strategic depth and cultural fluency that underpin his leadership today.
As he takes over McCann Worldgroup India, Dheeraj steps into a leadership mandate shaped by significant structural shifts triggered by the Omnicom–IPG merger. Industry observers note that his blend of strategic vision, transformation leadership, award‑winning creative track record, and deep experience across India and Asia makes him uniquely positioned to guide McCann India through the next phase of integrated growth, creativity and organisational evolution within the global restructured network.
About McCann Worldgroup
McCann Worldgroup, part of the Interpublic Group (NYSE: IPG), is a leading global creative solutions company operating across more than 100 countries with a mission to build enduring brands. McCann Worldgroup was named Network of the Year by The Andys in 2024, Network of the Year by the EPICA Awards for the sixth time, and ranked the Most Effective Agency Network by the Global Effie Index 2023. Its core networks include McCann, MRM, CRAFT and FutureBrand, in partnership with Momentum Worldwide, Weber Shandwick and UM, to deliver end‑to‑end creative, media, and brand‑building capabilities across the marketing spectrum.
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