“Trying to Do Our Best Every Day”: Christine Saunders on Leading dentsu’s Canadian Media Practice

At the start of 2025, dentsu Canada shook things up by naming Christine Saunders as chief executive officer, media practice. An industry veteran with over three decades of experience – who’d most recently served as CMO of Publicis Groupe Canada and CEO of Starcom Canada – this appointment had major implications for dentsu’s national offering, as her arrival signalled the network’s desire to redefine the role and impact of media agencies.

Now, half a year later, Christine has had a chance to sink her teeth into the new position. While she admits the early days were very much a case of “drinking from a firehose”, things are starting to settle, and the vision is clear. Sure, accelerating the agency’s media offering, driving growth through innovation, and fuelling collaboration with other dentsu agencies and offices across the region were initial mandates, but now, she’s pinpointed exact needs to help optimise growth. From doubling down on learning and development to exploring the new demands of CPG marketing, the scale may be grand, but the focus is specific, all of which sets the stage for interesting developments at dentsu Canada in the months to come.

To learn more about this, how she’s finding things at dentsu, and what brought her over in the first place, LBB’s Jordan Won Neufeldt sat down with Christine for a chat.

LBB> Christine, tell us about your decision to join dentsu! What has this appointment meant to you, and what are you hoping to accomplish, both on a personal and agency-wide level?

Christine> It’s funny – as I take time to reflect on my decision, I really didn’t realise how much I needed a change of pace and a new challenge. It is incredibly stimulating and rewarding to take proactive ownership of your own destiny.

Right now, I’m focused on solutions that drive our clients’ business. The industry continues to go through a lot of upheaval and change, and right now, our clients need assistance in marketing through these uncertain times. We’ve been through this before, and we’ll get through this again.

LBB> When you joined, a big part of your mandate was accelerating the agency’s media offering, while driving growth through innovation. How have you approached these aims thus far, and what has progress been like?

Christine> We have a very strong media offering, so it is just a matter of providing our people the freedom to keep accelerating it and start talking about it!

We continue to be on track for growth and have a very talented team here. I’m a little spoiled, to be honest. We have three incredible and strong media brands under the dentsu umbrella. Carat is a big, scaled agency that is second in Canada – hard to beat with blue chip clients. iProspect is a nimble digital performance agency that also understands full funnel – it is unique to have this type of agency as part of a holding company. And dentsu X is a super interesting model that is full-funnel, highly creative and strategic.

I have also been pleasantly surprised by the ease and supportive relationship that Canada has as part of the Americas model. I am an active part of the Americas leadership team, and Canada is on the radar in the dentsu network, often getting first looks at new innovations or tools.

LBB> Another of your initial aims was to move at the pace of evolution. On a practical level, what does this look like? How are you helping dentsu to stand out in today’s industry?

Christine> I think we are at yet another tipping point in our industry, where there is a redistribution of attention combined with this incredible surge of AI-assisted communications. We call it the ‘Algorithmic Era’, and at dentsu, we have been focusing on helping our clients break the algorithm to stand out but also harness AI-enabled tech approaches. We have been investing in attention metrics for a number of years and continue to double down in this area as a way to break the algorithm.

Now, as I write this, here’s another example of thought leadership at dentsu we just don’t share enough about: we have produced a lot of work around CPG marketing in the ‘Algorithmic Era’, which is important as brands have traditionally thrived on and excelled at winning both mental and physical availability. Specifically, the media ecosystem is now shaped by algorithms that influence 59.5% of advertising investments – a number expected to rise to 79% globally by 2027.

LBB> Notably, you’ve also expressed a strong need to challenge the status quo. Why is this so important to you, and how have you been working with your colleagues to apply this philosophy in the pursuit of all these aims?

Christine> I think the need to challenge the status quo just comes from a dislike of hearing the words ‘it can’t be done’. From my experience, if something makes sense, we can (and should) make it happen.

In terms of execution, I have a dream leadership team that works in lockstep with me. I love that they’re coast-to-coast, with substantial offices also in Montreal, Vancouver and Calgary. Having a breath of regional expertise is critical to solving our clients’ business problems.

LBB> Speaking more broadly, both nationally and internationally, what do you think of the state of media practice and craft at the moment? And where do you think dentsu’s place in all of that is?

Christine> I have a positive outlook in general, so I still think it is an exciting time to work in the media industry. We are the growth engine for most agencies, and particularly at dentsu, this translates to investment in our craft and support to grow. Like everyone in the industry, I read the news and I do worry about all the changes and what that is doing to the talent pool here in Canada, but all I can do at dentsu is have us be the beacon of stability, an attractor of great talent, and a grower of our clients’ businesses.

LBB> Building on this, how are you helping to shape dentsu’s approach to match the demands of the times? What can we expect to see in the coming months?

Christine> We are doubling down on learning and development with a dedicated team focused solely on this priority, rather than training people to be at the side of someone’s desk. More than ever, we can support all this change in the industry and landscape by having our people’s backs and giving them all the support they need. We are not perfect here, but I don’t think anyone can say we aren’t trying to do our best every day.

LBB> Finally, moving back to you, is there anything you’d still like your new peers to know about you, or fun stuff you’d like to share?

Christine> Ha! I’m a pretty open book and my poker face needs work, so I suspect my team knows way too much about me already, including my love for sports like my beloved Maple Leafs and Tiger-Cats.

At the end of the day, I’m a girl from the burbs who has to pinch herself most days because I get to do this great job. I know we aren’t saving lives, but I’m always conscious that we have thousands of employees – all of whom have lives and families to support – so I try to do my best to lead them to growth, with empathy, directness, and a little fun along the way.