AI has helped give Publicis Groupe Thailand a distinctive voice, Co-CEOs say

They had to race to handle the disruption caused by the emergence of this new, intelligent tool.

Those that could not failed, while others integrated AI into their business models and services. Publicis Group Thailand is among those that managed to thrive by embracing AI to transform itself from an agency to a partner of its clients, executives at the company said.

The process is ongoing, says Paruj Daorai, Co-CEO of Publicis Groupe Thailand. "Publicis Groupe is on its journey to becoming the best full-funnel commerce partner for brands,” he said.

"The marketing landscape has undergone a significant transformation that affects consumer and seller behaviour and enables buying anytime [and] anywhere across a greater range of platforms that are seamlessly connected as the offline and online worlds merge," he explained.

Persuading consumers to make a purchase requires continuous effort, and the process must align with every stage of what is now described as the consumer's “purchasing journey”.

Traditional advertising strategies that only seek to increase brand awareness no longer work, Paruj said.

A simple question

His partner, Co-CEO Sorada Sonprasit, said the company’s restructuring was based on a question posed by a client: "Why not run your business the way your business runs?"

Previously, the company had an operational model that did not fit the way it functioned.

"I endorsed the co-CEO model and readily embraced the structural change," Sorada said, explaining that this was the starting point for the company’s transformation.

Two CEOs are better than one, she said, explaining that this amplifies the company’s prowess and accelerates its advancement.

"The co-CEO concept has already proven its efficacy,” she said.

Harnessing AI

Technology is key to the company’s goal of becoming the leading “full-funnel commerce partner for brands”, Paruj said.

Publicis Groupe built what it calls the “Marcel AI platform”, and says it was the first agency in the world to do so.

"Publicis Groupe’s workforce is brought together through Marcel, a worldwide hub that serves as a resource for important data on marketing communications and developing crucial soft skills," Paruj said.

The company also leverages Publicis GPT, which it created with OpenAI, the developers behind ChatGPT.

"We have already implemented something like ChatGPT, but we customised it to be a closed system, which means all the confidential information of customers will be safe," Paruj explained.

Sorada added: "We still believe human creativity cannot be replaced by AI, but we keep an eye on it and employ the technology to speed up work rather than being afraid of it."

She said the company has internal "AI Fridays" to ensure that all staff remain up to date on AI developments that streamline workflows and help them prepare for the challenges of a changing labour market.

The company not only embraces AI technology, it also ensures that its employees see it as a helpful tool they can use to further their careers rather than a threat, Sorada said.