The Mobile Marketing Association (MMA) has launched a major restructuring effort that will turn the organization’s four worldwide operating regions into separate business units.The move will expand the duties of regional managing directors to better address specific regions’ unique needs.
“Internally, it’s not dramatically different from what we’ve been doing,” says Michael Becker, who stepped down from the MMA’s Board of Directors to take over the association’s North America division. “We’re enabling new layers of management from within the new regions.”
Perhaps the biggest change to the MMA’s structure is the separation of the role of CEO and manager of North America. Previously, the association’s CEO also managed its North American operations. Under the new structure, the CEO will manage global operations while a general manager will handle issues specific to North America.
Paul Berney will handle the group’s Europe, Middle East and Africa region while Rohit Dadwal will manage the MMA’s Asia Pacific branch. The association has yet to name a manger for its Latin America division, but says it is in discussions with candidates and its members can expect an appointment to happen soon.
Former MMA President and CEO Mike Wehrs announced in December that he would leave the company by year-end to return to the commercial sector. The association has yet to name a permanent CEO. Federico Pisani Massamormile was named interim CEO after Wehrs’ resignation.
“The restructuring enables us to address the growing popularity of mobile marketing and our increasing membership all over the world, while enabling a measure of ‘geographic specificity’ to how the organization operates,” said Massamormile in a statement. “Each of the managing directors will assume financial management for their respective regions, enabling greater flexibility to achieve their business goals.”
The restructuring comes at a time when mobile marketing has transitioned away from a technology play. “Mobile, and the potential for mobile marketing, has a global presence,” Becker says. “Now it’ more of a brand/marketer discussion versus a talk about the technology.”