Holding the Whole Picture, with Dragon Zhang

Scott and Drago are joined in the studio by Dragon Zhang, Head of Integration Strategy at Publicis Groupe Singapore, the 2025 Campaign Asia Strategic/Brand Planner of the Year for Greater China, and a recent inductee into Campaign Asia's 40 Under 40.

Dragon built her early strategy career across TBWA and Tomorrow (now Media.Monks) in Hong Kong and Shanghai before joining Publicis Groupe. Now based out of Singapore - but still bridging to China - she has been boldly defining what modern integration strategy looks like in practice; spearheading the 'Power of One' model for McDonald's China and now applying the same rigorously holistic approach to Oreo. 

In this episode, we cover three themes: what integration strategy actually means and why it is so pertinent to the current environment, how China's influence on the wider marketing world is shifting - and what brands in other Asian markets should be learning from it; and Dragon's distinctively anthropological approach to understanding culture and consumers, and the role of AI within it.

We discuss:

• Why Dragon invented her own job title — and the Chinese philosophy (屁股决定脑袋) behind it
• Integration in practice: the 'Make It Right, Make It Magic, Make It Work' model, and the McDonald's walkie talkie campaign that shows what changes when media, data and creative truly come together
• Why integration can make creative "too obedient" — and how to protect creative space within a data-led system
• China as a standalone market vs. China within a regional ecosystem — and where China is genuinely ahead: social commerce, live streaming, the creator economy
• What Chinese brands like Anker and BYD still need to crack to truly land globally
• Fan truths vs. consumer insights: the McSpicy Face campaign and why Dragon still believes strongly in the power of real-world customer immersion
• AI as foundation, not replacement: "Something we don't have yet needs to come from yourself"
• Leading change as a woman in the industry: on bravery, introversion, and staying rooted

Follow Dragon: LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/dragonaiesec?utm_source=share_via&utm_content=profile&utm_medium=member_ios

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