Assembly's MENA Power Play: Veteran Leadership to Fuel Growth

DUBAI, UAE – November 26, 2025 – Global omnichannel media agency Assembly is making a significant strategic adjustment to its leadership in the Middle East and North Africa (MENA), signaling a determined push to deepen its foothold in one of the world's fastest-growing advertising markets. The agency announced that industry heavyweight Ravi Rao will join as a Senior Advisor, a move designed to turbocharge its regional expansion.

The appointment comes as part of a broader leadership restructuring that also sees the planned departure of MENA CEO Faisal Dean at the end of 2025, following a successful decade-long tenure. This carefully orchestrated transition underscores the region's critical importance to Assembly and its parent network, Stagwell, as they aim to solidify the agency's position as a "modern alternative" to traditional holding company giants. Day-to-day leadership will continue under Chief Operating Officer Zubair Siddiqui and Managing Partner Kinloch Magowan, who will now partner closely with Rao.

Capitalizing on a Digital Gold Rush

Assembly's leadership shuffle is not happening in a vacuum. It is a calculated response to the explosive growth of the MENA advertising landscape, which is undergoing a profound digital transformation. The region's digital ad market, valued at over US$6.6 billion in 2023, is projected to skyrocket to nearly US$45 billion by 2032, boasting a staggering compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of 23.9%. Total ad spending is expected to cross the US$12 billion mark in 2024.

This boom is fueled by a confluence of powerful factors: a young, tech-savvy population, rapidly increasing internet and mobile penetration, and a burgeoning e-commerce sector led by giants like Noon and Amazon. Social media has become a dominant force, influencing consumer behavior and accounting for nearly 60% of the region's digital ad spend. This dynamic environment presents both immense opportunity and significant challenges, including a demand for sophisticated data analytics and a reported lack of data transparency that agencies like Assembly are poised to address with their data-centric models. Assembly's claim of "sustained double-digit growth" is a testament to its success in navigating this complex market, and the new leadership structure is designed to accelerate that momentum.

The Rao Effect: A Veteran's Hand on the Tiller

The appointment of Ravi Rao as Senior Advisor is the centerpiece of Assembly's strategic pivot. Rao is a widely respected figure in the industry, bringing over three decades of experience leading major media organizations across MENA and South Asia. His impressive resume includes stints as CEO of both GroupM MENA and Mindshare MENA, where he was instrumental in consolidating market leadership, driving digital transformation, and managing portfolios for top-tier global brands like Unilever, PepsiCo, and Mars.

Known as a "talent nurturer" and a master of business development, Rao’s deep-seated knowledge of the regional market, dating back to his first move to the Middle East in 1992, provides Assembly with an invaluable strategic asset. His role will not be merely ceremonial; he is tasked with partnering directly with the operational leadership of Siddiqui and Magowan to guide the agency through its next phase of expansion. His experience is expected to sharpen Assembly's competitive edge, enhance its full-funnel capabilities, and help navigate the intricate cultural and business landscapes of key markets like Saudi Arabia, the UAE, and Egypt.

A Legacy of Growth and a Planned Transition

While Rao's arrival signals a new chapter, it is built on a foundation of significant achievement under the outgoing CEO, Faisal Dean. Dean's departure at the year's end marks the conclusion of a transformative decade with the agency. Promoted to CEO in 2023, his leadership was credited with delivering consistent double-digit revenue growth and dramatically diversifying the agency's client base into lucrative sectors such as retail, real estate, and technology.

Under his watch, Assembly secured major accounts including Landmark Group, Emaar, and Dubai Tourism, and expanded its physical footprint from Dubai to establish offices in Cairo and Riyadh, growing the regional team to 200 specialists. This expansion earned the agency prestigious accolades, including Campaign Middle East's Media Agency of the Year in 2022. The transition is being managed as a deliberate and forward-looking process. In a statement, Assembly Global CEO Rick Acampora praised Dean's impact, noting, "The region is operating from a position of strength as we prepare for a new MENA CEO in 2026. I appreciate all that Faisal has contributed... The team has built real momentum here in the region, and we're focused on carrying that forward."

The Stagwell Blueprint in Action

This regional power play is a direct reflection of the global strategy of Assembly's parent company, Stagwell Inc. The self-proclaimed "challenger network" has pursued a relentless growth strategy built on strategic acquisitions, technological integration, and international expansion. With a stated goal of harmonizing creativity with leading-edge technology, Stagwell has been aggressively acquiring companies to bolster its digital and AI capabilities, evidenced by its partnership with Palantir and investments in AI-driven marketing platforms.

Stagwell has explicitly identified the Middle East as a key growth market, and Assembly's reinforcement of its MENA leadership team is a clear execution of this global vision. The investment in top-tier talent like Rao, coupled with a robust operational team and the promise of a new CEO in early 2026, demonstrates a long-term commitment to the region. It positions Assembly not just to compete, but to lead the charge in a market where the demand for sophisticated, data-driven, and full-funnel marketing solutions is reaching a fever pitch. This move is less a simple leadership change and more a declaration of intent to capture a dominant share of the MENA region's promising future.