MUMBAI: A major change is taking place at IPG Mediabrands India. Shashi Sinha, the CEO of Lodestar UM, is taking charge as CEO of IPG Mediabrands India in a newly created post while Lynn D‘Souza is quitting the company to become a social entrepreneur.

As part of the new arrangement, Initiative, BPN, Reprise and the Outdoor company will all now report to Sinha. He will also continue to function in his old role as Lodestar UM CEO.

In a related development, D‘Souza, who has been serving as the chairman and CEO of Lintas Media Group, will be leaving IPG Mediabrands at the end of November. She will announce the launch of a pioneering new initiative for the development sector in early 2013. She is an old hat at Lintas, having joined the agency in 1995 to set up Initiative Media.

"We want to take this opportunity to recognise another IPG veteran, Lynn de Souza. Lynn, Chairman and CEO of Lintas Media Group
 and an active participant in the non-profit space for several years, has expressed her desire to become a social entrepreneur. She will announce the launch of a pioneering new initiative for the development sector in early 2013, and will be leaving IPG Mediabrands at the end of November," IPG said in a statement.

The formation of IPG Mediabrands in March this year saw IPG leveraging its number two position with more than 17 per cent share of the Indian media market. In addition to the momentum gained by the three media agencies - Lodestar UM, Initiative and BPN - this period also saw the strengthening of the digital offering, Reprise – a joint venture with India’s largest digital independent, Interactive Avenues.

Magna Intelligence was launched to further improve the group’s buying capabilities and IPG Mediabrands also brought its unique consumer panels to the market. With more than 16000 contacts in India alone, the consumer panels fuel proprietary tools such as Matrix.

As IPG Mediabrands India enters the next growth phase, the agency‘s forward motion will continue with the launch of IPG Mediabrands Analytics, and the renewed focus and energy on the IPG Mediabrands outdoor business.

Sinha, an IPG veteran of over 20 years, has rapidly expanded and developed Lodestar UM over the past six years, led the way for the foundation of many new offerings in the market, and has remained actively engaged in various industry forums. Currently, he is also the President of The Advertising Club.