Kris Wanamaker
APO Group (www.APO-opa.com), the leading Pan-African communications consultancy and press release distribution service, is delighted to announce the appointment of South African-British-American national Kris Wanamaker as chief revenue officer (CRO).
As CRO, Wanamaker will be responsible for all revenue-related functions at APO Group, including marketing, sales, customer support, further expansion of our service offering, and revenue management.
The hiring process for this new role began six months ago, and has been the most extensive ever undertaken by APO Group with the entire management team involved in ensuring the right candidate was found.
One of Wanamaker’s first missions will be to harness the power of APO Group’s unique model, integrating the company’s renowned press release distribution and public relations business units into a single turnkey solution that provides clients with unparalleled Pan-African communications support.
Wanamaker has over 20 years of experience in sales and marketing.
Throughout her career, she has reliably delivered results for agencies and corporates, as well as the start-up organisations she co-founded with fellow industry leaders. As a South African national who also holds UK and US passports, she has done this across several geographies, including Dubai, Cape Town, Johannesburg, and London.
Wanamaker has vast experience with some of the biggest global brands including Microsoft, BMW and Daimler Chrysler. She has also looked after various stakeholders at several levels, including Gulf royalty, property developers, and politicians.
Throughout her career, Wanamaker has demonstrated her versatility and entrepreneurial spirit. She has co-founded four successful companies including: a telecommunications business in Johannesburg; a copywriting agency in South Africa; a real estate firm, and an interior design/architecture firm in the UAE. This last company was awarded “Best Interior Decorating and Design Business Dubai” by UAE Business in 2017.
Wanamaker is a major champion of people development. She focuses on creating safe and collaborative environments for her teams while encouraging individuals to grow and excel.
Wanamaker will join the APO Group management team, and will be based in Cape Town and London.
Wanamaker’s appointment comes at a time of exceptional growth for APO Group. The company reported increased revenue of 88% in the first semester of 2022, versus the same period in 2021, and this success has allowed APO Group to continue to recruit the very best talent from the African and international communications communities.
In recent months, the company has made several high-caliber appointments to senior positions, including former Edelman content strategist Lindsay Farley, who was hired as vice president of editorial and content strategy, and new head of design Hussain Ali, who was previously design lead at Ogilvy.
“This is a new role for both me and for APO Group, and I’m extremely excited to get started,” said Kris Wanamaker, chief revenue officer of APO Group. “It is clear that this is a ‘people-first’ company with a passion for its clients, and as CRO I have a fantastic opportunity to work with like-minded colleagues to help even more organisations thrive in Africa.”
“This has been the most intensive and prolonged recruitment process we’ve ever had, but we couldn’t be happier with the result,” said Nicolas Pompigne-Mognard, founder and chairman of APO Group. “Kris has not only demonstrated excellence in revenue generation throughout her career, but she also has the entrepreneurial spirit and global experience to develop ideas and strategies that will take APO Group to the next level.”
