The latest round-up of news from the bustling public relations industry comes with announcements of new offerings and moves from firms around the world. In an industry that must always be a step ahead, the news cycle is endless.
Struggling MDC Looking to Penn?
The struggling MDC Partners firm, which lost over $35m in 2018 and has a total debt nearing the $1 billion mark, is currently in negotiations with Stagwell Group leader Mark Penn to take the lead. Penn, who has previously worked with Bill and Hillary Clinton and corporations such as Microsoft, had attempted to purchase MDC in partnership with Apollo Global Management before. Now, he’s in talks to take the lead and an investment stake in the firm in an attempt to turn the ship around. PR firms they own include Kwittken PR and Allison & Partners.
MSL Offers New Influencer Agency
Influencer marketing has become a bread and butter staple within the communications industry, and agencies are beginning to provide more services for getting the most out of this platform. To that end, MSL is unrolling a new offering called MSL Fluency. The new offering will be an expansion of the services currently offered by MSL, which hopes to continue to expand upon and improve the use of the influencer marketing campaign. Through the use of extensive analytics, MSL Fluency hopes to bring a new level of real-time campaign management and expertise to its client base.
Merck Enters U.S. Corporate PR Review
Big pharma brand Merck has begun an agency review of U.S. PR, with several big firms participating. The review is focused primarily on corporate communications, and some agencies participating are a part of a larger network of firms with which Merck has previously worked. PR firms they have worked with include Marina Maher Communications, W2O Group and Weber Shandwick.
Agresta In at DiGennaro Communications
Prominent B2B strategists and PR agency DiGennaro Communications has tapped Stephanie Agresta as the newest member of its executive leadership team. Agresta has previously worked with firms such as MSLGroup and Porter Novelli. Agresta will be focused on client service and business development, with an eye on continuing to expand the growing roster of clients retained by DiGennaro.
Agresta brings over 20 years of experience within the digital communications industry to the table, having worked previously with clients such as South By Southwest and Comcast NBCUniversal.
Ruder Finn Number One in China
The Asian arm of Ruder Finn has been named the #1 consulting firm in China. This award comes for Performance and Contribution to Client Business Growth in the R3 Worldwide China 2019 PR Scope Research. This Scope gathered information from marketing leaders in China, ranking the candidates in a vast array of categories. China, whose economy has seen slowed growth in recent years, is ripe with competition for public eyes and spending power. For this reason, it’s important to measure public perception and market awareness, which are topics covered by the PR Scope.
Additionally, regional director for Ruder Finn Asia Elan Shou was tapped as Agency Leader of the Year as a part of Public Affairs Asia’s 2018 Gold Standard Awards. Shou, who took position in January 2018, contributed to double-digit growth in 2018. Having held various leadership positions at Ruder Finn Asia since 2011, Shou has played an integral role into the expansive growth of Ruder Finn and the resulting staying power and reverence the agency has earned through shrewd decision making.