61: Phillip Rubel, former CEO, Saatchi & Saatchi Fallon/ Beacon Communications

<p>Phillip Rubel shares his extensive leadership experience in the US, Canada and Japan in various fields including advertising and consulting. Mr. Rubel is originally from Canada and moved to Japan in 1997 on a three-year posting but returned multiple times. In total, his career in Japan ran for over 20 years. Mr. Rubel experienced working in various roles and fields such as marketing, business licensing and acquisition, strategic planning and account management. Mr. Rubel was recruited by McCann Erickson in 1997 as the Senior Vice-President and Manager of one of the company’s division. There, Mr. Rubel dealt with global clients and helped form new partnerships. Prior to working at McCann, Mr. Rubel co-founded an agency in Canada. Mr. Rubel then moved onto other prominent leadership roles including becoming CEO of Saatchi & Saatchi Fallon, CEO of Beacon Communications, Partner at KPMG and Director Marketing & Communications at Philip Morris Japan. He has currently returned to Canada as the Managing Partner of Song Sparrow Advisory & Executive In Residence at the University of Victoria.</p> <p> </p> <p>On his first leadership role in Japan at McCann, Mr. Rubel recalls how Japan at the time was struggling with the burst of the economic bubble, and was hesitant in engaging with global management and leadership practices. Mr. Rubel says having people look at thing with a “fresh set of eyes” and motivate them to take risks was a new leadership style compared to what he had experienced in Canada and the US. He adds: “I think one of the challenges for any new manager to Japan is to determine how to instigate a change without being revolutionary and more evolutionary.”</p> <p> </p> <p>After McCann Erickson, Mr. Rubel became the Japan head of Beacon Communications, an advertising agency formed by merging different companies of Publicis Groupe and Dentsu. Mr. Rubel recalls the merger process as a “life time opportunity.” He sought to define the purpose of the new organization and create a common culture for all employees