Prof. John D Chacko

Chairman
45th IAA World Congress 2024, Penang

John is not just an industry leader here, but actively carries our country’s flag proudly around the globe in his capacity as Chairman of the IAA World Congress in 2023.

He was also the inaugural Chief Judge of the Malaysia Effie Awards and has led the CMO Awards jury since its inaugural year.

John has over 35 years of global experience in multinational FMCG companies across Australia, NZ, UK, Africa, Middle East, Latin America and Asia with brands like Kraft, Coca-Cola and McDonald’s.

He was also Group CMO, CEO/MD of Khazanah National subsidiaries, Proton and LeapED.

Renzo C Viegas

Founder and Executive Director
Crescer Sdn Bhd

Renzo held senior positions in various Asia Pacific countries including regional responsibilities until year 2008. His last held position was Chief Operating Officer and Chief Financial Officer of Citibank Malaysia.

He was also CEO of Group Consumer Banking at CIMB after serving as Executive Director and Deputy CEO of CIMB Group from 2012-2015.

Before CIMB, he was Deputy MD of RHB Bank having started his working career with Citibank in 1985 where he progressively held senior positions across Asia Pacific.

He also served as Adviser to the Group CEO of CIMB Bank, where he was responsible for the development of overall business strategies until March 2019.

Karen Chan

Group Chief Commercial Officer
AirAsia 

Independent Non-Executive Director
QSR Brands (M) Holdings Bhd

Karen is a rare business navigator in our midst. She served in regional marketing leadership roles for The McDonald’s Group and Coca- Cola, before becoming Chief Digital Officer for Pizza Hut Asia Pacific for almost three years.

Karen was also Senior VP of Digital for Clarks across Asia Pacific Middle East and Africa before joining AirAsia as Group Chief Commercial Officer last year.

She was also CEO of AirAsia.com, leading business transformation and creating a travel and lifestyle platform that is poised to change the face of the business.

Dato’ William Ng

Founder & Group Publisher
Business Media International

Chairman
Small and Medium Enterprises Association Malaysia (SAMENTA) 

William is a writer publisher par excellence and he set up the Enterprise Asia Center for Entrepreneurship at HELP University to promote business leadership.

He is also Group Publisher and editor-in-chief of Business Media International, Southeast Asia’s largest business- to-business media owner and publisher.

A regular CMO Awards judge since year one, William dissects marketing strategies and marketplace successes with a pragmatic business mindset.

He is also managing director of SGX-listed Audience Analytics Limited. For over 20 years, he championed of SMEs in various capacities and now chairs SAMENTA.

Santharuban T. Sundaram

Chief Executive Officer
Etika Holdings Sdn Bhd

Ruban is a shining example of a marketing leader who now leads a group of companies.

He also has the distinction of winning the first Malaysian CMO of the Year Award five years ago in shining glory. He is the CEO at Etika Holdings, a unit under Asahi Group Companies, overseeing the Malaysia, Singapore, and Brunei markets.

He remains CEO of ATLAS Vending. He was previously Etika’s senior vice president marketing and alternate business but took on the role of CEO of

ATLAS has since worked with brands including SC Johnson, Pepsi, Tropicana, and FWD Takaful. Before that, he was VP of marketing, as well as Group GM at Etika.

He also worked at Celcom Axiata as head of communications and planning, group digital services.

Dato’ Samson Anand George

Vice President
KIA Asia Pacific

Dato’ Samson Anand George is COO & Director of KIA Malaysia Sdn Bhd, the official distributor of KIA vehicles in Malaysia.

Dato’ was previously Group Chief Executive Officer of the Automotive Group, Naza Corporation Holdings.

A true veteran of the automotive industry, he has been conferred the Ordre National du Mérite by the French government, underlining his contributions to the French nation through the automotive industry.

He rose from a General Manager to Naza Group CEO for Automotive Division and was Automotive Man of the Year 2012. Dato’ was instrumental in bringing Peugeot and Citroën to Malaysia.

Datuk Yvonne Chia

Chairman
Standard Chartered Bank Malaysia Berhad

Yvonne Chia was the first woman to become the CEO of a commercial bank in Malaysia; in 1996 at the age of 43, she became CEO of RHB Bank. A year later, during the Asian financial crisis, she became CEO of Sime Bank too and steered both banks through rough waters.

After close to four decades in banking, she retired as Managing Director and CEO of Hong Leong Bank in 2013. Datuk Yvonne is now Chairman of Standard Chartered Bank Malaysia Berhad and sits on the boards of several public listed companies and NGOs.

Surina Shukri

Board Director

Surina Shukri, named among the World’s 50 Most Influential People Revolutionising Governance in the inaugural Agile 50 list by Apolitical & World Economic Forum’s Global Future Council on Agile Governance, brings over two decades of experience working across a diverse range of companies and industries in across private and public sectors. 

She was previously CEO of MDEC, responsible for accelerating development of Malaysia’s digital economy and building an inclusive, technologically integrated society. 

She played a central role in steering MDEC through the disruptions caused by the onset of the COVID-19 global pandemic. She also advised the government on digital economy policy and economic recovery plans, serving on various national councils, working committees and advisory roles including National Digital Economy & 4IR Council, the central governing body for digital and technology development and Economic Action Council, both chaired by Prime Minister.

She spent her professional career in the New York City, including 17 years of experience as an investment banker, strategist and leader at JPMorgan Chase & Co. She is a globally-recognised and respected thought leader in digital transformation, innovation, diversity & inclusion and a strong advocate of women empowerment, speaking at over 150+ high-level engagements to date. These include events like the World Economic Forum Global Technology Governance Summit, the Khazanah Megatrends Forum, and more.

Charles Brewer

Group Chief Executive Officer

Pos Malaysia Berhad

Charles graduated from University of Reading, United Kingdom. He also holds an Advanced Logistics diploma from Cranfield University School of Management and completed the Advanced Senior Executive Management Programme at Henley Business School in the United Kingdom.

Charles Brewer, a British national, has been serving as the Group Chief Executive Officer of PosMalaysia Berhad since 1 August 2021. With extensive experience in the supply chain industry, particularly in e-commerce logistics, cross-border fulfilment, first and last mile delivery, logistics and supply chain management, as well as business and digital transformation, Charles brings a wealth of expertise to his role.

Prior to joining Pos Malaysia, Charles held the position of Chief Operating Officer at Canada Post and enjoyed a distinguished 34-year career with DHL Express, assuming various roles in Malaysia, the Philippines, South Africa, Europe, the Middle East, and America.

Throughout his professional journey, Charles has consistently demonstrated his ability to manage diversity and comprehend cross-cultural differences, having spent considerable time in different parts of the world, including Malaysia.

Beyond his professional endeavours, Charles is passionate about food and is an avid football fan.

Krishnamurthy Sriram

Chief Executive Officer

Wipro Unza Malaysia

A passionate business leader-engineer-marketer Sriram has over 27 years of international & cross-functional experience with leading organisations such as Hindustan Unilever, Unilever Asia, Pidilite & Wipro.

His specialties include: Product-Market Strategy, P&L management, Organizational Transformation and Change Leadership, Brand Equity and Identity Management, Multi-country Marketing, Marketing Capability building, Consumer Insights, Communication Development & Evaluation, Sales & Distribution Management, Organizational Cost Optimization.