Ogilvy Thailand has appointed Mettipapan Tongton as Ogilvy Lead, succeeding Chief Executive Officer Jiravara Virayavardhana, who is retiring after more than 31 years with the company.
Effective August 2026, Tongton will work with Ogilvy Thailand’s senior leadership team, regional and global leaders across the network, and Chief Creative Officer Pete Thasorn Boonyanate.
Tongton has more than 18 years of experience in the marketing communications industry and has served on Ogilvy’s executive board. She was previously Managing Director of Ogilvy One and T&Pm, a WPP agency that partners with Ogilvy across Asia-Pacific.
Her experience includes brand management, online-to-offline communications strategy, customer experience and marketing technology-enabled customer relationship management. In her new role, she will focus on creative excellence and innovation through WPP Open, WPP’s shared AI-powered operating system, while scaling capabilities across brand strategy, communications, experience design and public relations.
Virayavardhana said: “My time at Ogilvy Thailand has been both the greatest challenge and the greatest privilege of my career. This is not simply an advertising agency, it is a family of exceptionally talented people who believe in the power of creativity.
“The work our teams have created for our clients and their brands is a source of enormous pride, built on the distinctive foundation that is uniquely Ogilvy. That strong foundation will be the driving force that carries Ogilvy Thailand forward with confidence and effectiveness.
I am fully confident that Ogilvy Thailand will reach even greater heights of success, while continuing to deliver outstanding creative work and maintain enduring client relationships.”
Tongton said: “I am deeply honoured to step into this leadership role. While the agency landscape is changing faster than ever, Ogilvy Thailand’s mission remains constant: to deliver creative excellence and drive growth for our clients.
“In today’s complex economic and marketing environment, brands need an agency that acts as a true partner, one that can advise closely and in depth, while bringing strategic capability, creativity and the reach of a global network. Working closely with other WPP agencies gives us the very best of that network to elevate the creative work our clients have long trusted us to deliver, supported by world-class technology.”
Laurent Ezekiel, Global CEO of Ogilvy, added, “On behalf of everyone across our global network, I want to pay tribute to Jiravara for an extraordinary 31 years of service to Ogilvy Thailand.
“Her leadership has been defined by an unwavering commitment to creative excellence, to our clients, and to the people around her, and she leaves behind a legacy that will shape this agency for years to come. We are enormously grateful for everything she has built.
“At the same time, I could not be more excited about what lies ahead. Mettipapan is exactly the kind of leader Ogilvy Thailand needs for this next chapter – ambitious, forward-thinking, and deeply connected to our clients’ needs. As we continue to bring the full strength of Ogilvy’s Borderless Creativity to markets around the world, working hand-in-hand with WPP Creative, I have every confidence that under her leadership, Ogilvy Thailand will continue to build on its remarkable legacy and deliver outstanding creative and commercial success for our clients.”
