Dhaka, March 19 – The seventh Bangladesh Brand Forum Seminar 2017 was held on Saturday at Hotel Le Méridien Dhaka, under the theme of “Branding in Digital Age.”In Association with national English daily The Daily Star, the event was organized by Bangladesh Brand Forum (BBF) and powered by Dhaka Bank Limited & Beximco.
Presented by American International University-Bangladesh (AIUB), the event aimed at inspiring the CXOs, Heads of Marketing, Brand Managers, Agency Heads, Operation Heads, Digital Marketing Department and Leaders of Bangladesh to be a part of the digital transition that is going to change Bangladesh in a positive manner.
Dr. Charles C Villanueva, pro vice-chancellor of the AIUB, delivered the welcome note in the seminar while Mr Syed Mahbubur Rahman, managing director & CEO of Dhaka Bank Limited, gave the special note.
The opening speech was given by Mr. Shariful Islam, managing director & founder of Bangladesh Brand Forum.
The day started with the first keynote session from Mr. Hermawan Kartajaya, president, World Marketing Association and the co-founder of Asia Marketing Federation.
After Hermawan’s engaging session, a recorded speech from Jagdish Sheth, a professor at Charles H Kellstadt of Marketing at Goizueta Business School of Emory University was played for the participants.
The next keynote session was from Mr Debabrata Mukherjee, vice-president, Marketing, Coca-Cola India & Southwest Asia.
A panel discussion on “Traditional to Digital: The organizational Perspective” was held in the next segment of the seminar.
The Panel Members were Professor Syed Saad Andaleeb, vice-chancellor, BRAC University; Mr. Kazi Mahboob Hasan, senior director & head of Transform, GrameenPhone; Munawar Misbah Moin, group director, Rahimafrooz Solar and Syed Farhad Ahmed, managing director & CEO, Aamra Technologies Ltd.
Later, a case study presentation was held in the participation of Indonesia, Philippines & Bangladesh on the topic of “Future of Marketing: Brands Evolving from Traditional to Digital Landscape”.
Dr. Hooi Den Huan, director of the Nanyang Technopreneurship Center & associate professor at Nanyang Technological University moderated the session, with the participation of Dr. Syed Ferhat Anwar, a professor at IBA-University of Dhaka, and Maria Luz E. Javier, secretary general, Asia Marketing Federation (AMF) and former president, Philippine Marketing Association.
The next keynote session was by Mr Nigel Hollis, executive vice-president and chief global analyst at Kantar Millward Brown on the topic of “Brand Building in the Digital Age”.
The last keynote session was by Salvador Lopez-Jimenez, a professor at ESADE Business School and also a renowned rock musician of Spain.
At the seminar, all participants were provided with an e-book of “Marketing 4.0: Moving from Traditional to Digital” by Professor Philip Kotler, Hermawan Kartajaya & Iwan Setiawan; the book was brought by Shwapno, a superstore chain brand in Bangladesh.
The event was supported, among others, by Yellow, Bangladesh Edible Oil Limited, and Rahimafrooz Solar.
The event partners were Le Meridien, Etihad Airlines, Shwapno, Terracotta, MSB, Aamra, Masthead PR, and WebAble. – UNB
