Ruder Finn creates global tech and AI chief role, hands it to 16-year veteran

Ruder Finn has handed one newly created job to one person: global chief technology officer and chief data & AI officer. The promotion goes to Tejas Totade, a 16-year agency veteran, and it puts technology, data and AI under a single leader across the whole group.

The move isn't happening in a vacuum. Ruder Finn Atteline, the agency's MENA arm with offices in Dubai and Riyadh, is already selling AI visibility and generative engine optimisation (GEO) services in both Arabic and English. In plain terms: the agency tracks and shapes how brands, executives and institutions show up when people ask ChatGPT-style models a question instead of typing into Google.

That's the mechanism behind this appointment — comms shops are being paid to manage answers, not just headlines.

What does the new role actually cover?

At group level, Totade's brief has two parts:

• Widening access to AI tools and training in every region Ruder Finn operates in
• Building the architecture that supports the agency's AI capabilities end to end

His credentials run deep. He joined as a senior developer more than 16 years ago and founded rf.TechLab, the agency's emerging-technology incubator, in 2018.

Totade framed the role as a coordination play rather than a technology-buying spree. "The greatest opportunity comes when we work together, choosing the right technology, grounding it in data and applying AI to solve a real business problem," he said. "This role enables us to create that shared vision globally and help our teams and clients translate the enormous potential of AI into measurable value."

Note the last two words — measurable value. That's the pitch clients are hearing, and it's the one they'll hold agencies to.

What's already running in MENA?

The regional practice operates through the Tech Lab at Ruder Finn Atteline, the local arm of rf.TechLab. It started life as a data and measurement capability. It now builds AI-led services across three areas: search, competitive intelligence and discovery intelligence.

Delivery sits with the agency's Center of Excellence team, which works alongside Ruder Finn's global technology, data and AI team in the US.

The agency itself calls the appointment a formalisation — technology and AI in the region have already moved from back-office support functions into core areas of investment. The title change follows the money, in other words, rather than preceding it.

What did the CEO say?

CEO Kathy Bloomgarden said the agency has always believed technology should expand what communicators can accomplish, and that Totade has been central to building that capability.

"As technology, data and AI become increasingly interconnected, we're committed to bringing the most cutting-edge AI capabilities to clients, under the leadership of Tejas," she said.

Cutting-edge is the claim; the Dubai and Riyadh GEO work in two languages is the evidence on the table so far.

For practitioners, the signal is straightforward: the person who built the incubator now controls the whole stack, from tool selection to training to architecture — and the MENA play is the template other regions will likely copy.

One job title, one leader, and a bet that AI visibility becomes standard comms work.