Asia's Communications Leadership Gap Spawns New Executive Service

Most Asian organizations have no shortage of PR agencies, social media managers, or content producers. What many lack is the senior executive who ties it all together.

That gap has been around for years. A new breed of service provider is now stepping in to fill it.

On May 7, 2026, Tavy Cussinel, former Managing Director of Redhill Singapore, launched Time for T Communications, offering fractional chief communications officer (FCCO) services across Asia and globally. The model gives organizations senior-level communications leadership on a flexible, part-time basis. No full-time salary. No equity. No 12-month ramp-up.

The Problem: Tactics Without a Strategy

Cussinel's diagnosis is blunt. "Too many organisations are producing communications activity without a strategic architecture behind it," she said. "They have tactics, agencies and content, but no conductor."

That missing conductor is the chief communications officer (CCO), a C-suite role that sets overall communications strategy, aligns messaging across the business, and protects the brand during a crisis. In many Asian companies, that role simply doesn't exist. PR is treated as a vendor function, not a strategic one.

Research from the Institute for Public Relations found that 61% of global organizations fail to share communications assets across countries. In Asia, the problem runs deeper: communications teams are often structured to execute orders from above, not shape strategy from within.

Why Fractional Models Are Growing

The fractional executive concept isn't new in the West. But demand has surged globally, with 37% of mid-sized firms planning to employ fractional or interim executives by mid-2026, up from just 12% in 2020. More than 142,000 professionals now list "fractional" in their LinkedIn job title, triple the count from 2018.

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Southeast Asia is now a named growth region for this model. The timing is not accidental. Early-stage startup funding across Southeast Asia hit a six-year low of US$1.1 billion in the first half of 2025. Budget-constrained companies still need credible communications leadership, but a full-time senior hire can cost US$200,000 to US$500,000 or more annually. The fractional model cuts that cost while getting someone senior in the door within days.

In Singapore, providers like Socium and Mozaic Communications already offer fractional CMO and CCO services. Cussinel's launch adds another dedicated practitioner to the region.

A Broader Market Signal

Cussinel's move comes alongside another notable data point. In March 2026, Publicis Groupe APAC created its first-ever regional Chief Communications Officer role, appointing Naomi Michael, who previously spent nine years as Chief Marketing and Communications Officer at IPG Mediabrands APAC. The fact that one of the world's largest agency holding companies created a brand-new CCO function for the region signals growing consensus that communications leadership in Asia has been structurally underinvested.

For organizations that can't justify or don't need a full-time CCO, the fractional route is increasingly the practical answer. Cussinel frames it plainly: "This isn't about volume or visibility for its own sake. It's about clarity of signal, knowing who you are speaking to, what you stand for, and how communication actively supports growth, trust and long-term value."

Whether more practitioners follow her into the FCCO model will say a lot about how seriously Asian organizations are beginning to treat communications as a boardroom concern, not just a marketing cost.