Google Malaysia's head named managing director for Vietnam

Google Malaysia’s managing director Marc Woo has been appointed managing director of Google Vietnam, where the American tech giant has not opened an office.

Without such a physical presence, he works at the Google Asia Pacific office in Singapore. Woo had since 2011 worked with Google Malaysia, where he started as a senior account manager.

"As an experienced leader at Google, he will play a key role in leading Google's business strategy, building partnerships for Google’s products, and rolling out initiatives that support the country’s digital transformation," Google said in a release.

Woo is the first managing director for Google in Vietnam. Before taking on the new role, he had taken many trips to Vietnam to experience the sight, sounds, and wonders of many points of interest in the country. His fondest memories include cycling in Hoi An, golfing in Danang, both in the central region, and feasting at the local vendors in Hanoi in the north and Ho Chi Minh City in the south, the release noted.

In his post on LinkedIn about the new post dated December 7, Woo said he was getting into an “uncomfortably excited” mode as he was leaving home to go from “one rocketship to another, Malaysia to Vietnam."

"The next stop is the marvel that is Vietnam. I am feeling uncomfortably excited about the immense opportunity, passionate Vietnamese team, and once-in-a-lifetime chance to create a lasting impact on Google and Vietnam. Onwards and upwards."

Woo made his Vietnam debut at YouTube’s annual event “Brandcast Delivered 2022” in HCMC on December 6. The meeting shared the latest YouTube trends, insights, and inspiration from brands succeeding on the platform with marketers across Vietnam.

At the event, Tammy Phan was officially introduced as the country marketing manager for Vietnam, Google Asia Pacific. She is responsible for connecting the dots - across products, users, partners, media, civic sector, and government - to enable Vietnamese people and businesses to thrive locally and in the global economy.

Prior to marketing at Google, she led strategic product and channel partnerships for Google across Southeast Asia, where she partnered with business-to-business startups, technology companies, and advertising agencies to help businesses grow with ads and digital solutions.

Vietnam's government announced this August new rules on cybersecurity in Decree 53, which took effect on October 1. The decree applies in particular to tech giants like Google, Facebook, Amazon, and Microsoft, e-commerce sites, gaming platforms, telecoms networks, online payment platforms, and other enterprises that have customers using the Internet.

The regulations require technology firms to store their Internet user data and establish local offices within Vietnam. However, foreign companies have an entire 12 months to comply, starting when they receive instructions from the Minister of Public Security.