Catalina Expands Its Leadership Team In Tokyo To Accelerate Growth Across Japan

TOKYO, Oct. 3, 2019 /PRNewswire/ -- Brett Wayn, who joined Catalina Marketing Japan as interim Chief Operating Officer in Nov. 2018, has been named President and CEO of the growing operation. Meanwhile, Sean Chu has been hired as Chief Revenue & Marketing Officer, reporting to Wayn.

"Japan is recognized worldwide for its high-quality retailing, impeccable customer service, and a huge range of consumer products," said Jerry Sokol, global Chief Executive Officer of Catalina. "Right now, Catalina is providing business intelligence and marketing solutions to some of Japan's most respected brands, retailers and digital publishers. In the process, our Japanese team is engaging and delighting increasingly informed shoppers across multiple online and offline channels. That's why we're beefing up our leadership team there, and reapplying advances we've been making in Japan across our network, and vice versa."

In his new role, Wayn is responsible for all aspects of Catalina Japan's business, from strategy, innovation and operations, to partnerships and relationships with retailers and brands.

"Brett's deep understanding of the Japanese market makes him an excellent addition to our leadership team," said Tom Corley, Catalina EVP and Global Chief Revenue Officer, to whom Wayn reports. "Brett's mission is to lead a diverse and talented team of sales and marketing experts, data scientists and analysts, and product engineering and infrastructure specialists to ensure that Catalina Japan is the very best partner for our customers."

Wayn has extensive operating experience in technology businesses across Asia-Pacific, Europe and the U.S. A native of Australia, he lived and worked in Japan from 2001-04 as the Chief Operating Officer of DoCoMo AOL, where he first met and reported to Jerry Sokol. Wayn has also held senior executive roles for Microsoft and Yahoo in Silicon Valley and has served as a digital transformation consultant to APN News and Media in New Zealand and Hearst Newspapers in San Francisco and New York. More recently, he worked as an executive focused on mobile products and content in the fintech industry for Social Finance, Inc.

A graduate of the University of Sydney with a medical degree, Wayn was a practicing doctor for four years before his fascination with media led to his career shift into broadcast television and then interactive multimedia and the internet.

"We're also pleased to welcome Sean Chu to Catalina Japan as Chief Revenue and Marketing Officer," added Corley. "Sean, who grew up in Japan, is at ease operating in Japanese, English and Chinese, and he has extensive c-level leadership experience from working with U.S.-based businesses in the Asia-Pacific region. His strong background as an engineer, and his work on digital content and advertising at Microsoft, make him a strong partner for our product and tech teams. He is also a talented sales and marketing executive who will further enable our success in Japan." 

Previously, Chu was Chief Strategy Officer at the award-winning AI Tech company, Appier. He has broad experience in traditional and digital sales & marketing businesses, having served as CMO for Microsoft Japan; Regional Director of Online Services at Microsoft Inc.; President and Representative Director for AXN Japan, a TV channel owned by Sony Pictures Entertainment; and International Director of Sales and Market Development for Dow Jones in New York. Chu began his career in 1988 as a Project Engineer at Motorola in Schaumburg, Illinois. He is a graduate of Cornell University.

SOURCE Catalina Marketing