Dentsu’s Takeshi Sano Is Hustling Hard — But Retaining Heineken Won’t Save Them From Microsoft’s Loss

Dentsu’s new CEO, Takeshi Sano, is out there grinding, making the rounds in the media buying world, trying to spin some wins. The biggest headline? Retaining Heineken’s global business. Sounds like a victory lap until you realize it’s barely a consolation prize after losing Microsoft’s massive account. Let’s be clear: this isn’t just a bump in the road; it’s a glaring symptom of deeper issues inside Dentsu’s strategy and execution.

The industry chatter is unanimous — Sano isn’t the guy to blame for losing Microsoft. Fair enough. But the bigger problem is that his playing defense with Heineken feels like a weak attempt at damage control. Retaining a global giant like Heineken isn’t exactly a walk in the park, but it’s the bare minimum expected from a holding company of Dentsu’s stature. If your headline win is “We didn’t lose Heineken,” you’re already on the back foot.

What’s more telling is how little Dentsu has adapted to the brutal realities of today’s media landscape. Microsoft’s departure wasn’t some random misfortune; it was a predictable result of complacency and lackluster innovation. Meanwhile, Sano’s PR machine is busy polishing this ‘Heineken retention’ narrative like it’s a game-changer, while the real question remains: what’s the plan to actually win new business or reinvent their media buying approach?

Dentsu’s troubles are a textbook case of a giant stuck in legacy thinking, trying to paper over cracks with incremental moves. This isn’t about one CEO’s hot streak or misstep. It’s about a company that needs radical transformation — not safe PR plays. Sano’s hustle is necessary, but it’s nowhere near sufficient. The next few quarters will show if he’s capable of more than just damage control or if Dentsu is resigned to a slow fade.

Here’s the uncomfortable truth for Dentsu and anyone clinging to the “global agency is king” myth: holding on to old clients won’t cut it anymore. You don’t get to coast on legacy accounts and call it a win. The media buying game has evolved, and if you’re not aggressively innovating or failing fast, you’re losing. Sano needs to stop making the rounds and start making waves — or prepare to be another cautionary tale in agency irrelevance.