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| Matthew Briant |
Hill+Knowlton Strategies has named Matthew Briant managing director of its Singapore operation and Laura Morgan managing director of the firm's consumer practice. Briant, who will be part of H+K Asia’s senior management team, was most recently head of digital at The Walt Disney Company APAC. He was previously director of mobile at the Dentsu Aegis Network APAC and commercial director of Out There Media. Morgan joins H+K from DeVries Global where she was most recently global EVP, strategic alliances. She will be responsible for leading H+K’s U.S. relationship with Procter & Gamble as well as oversight for other industry sectors including consumer packaged goods, food & drink and retail.
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| Jennifer Vides Hirsch |
Metrolink, a commuter rail system in Southern California, has appointed Jennifer Vides Hirsch, a veteran of Weber Shandwick and Burson-Marsteller, as chief marketing and communications officer. Vides Hirsch comes to Metrolink from the Public Media Group of Southern California, where she was vice president of marketing, communications and brand. She has also held senior level brand marketing and communications positions at Hot Topic, Inc., the Boys and Girls Club of Santa Monica and the Gymboree Corporation.
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| Cara Donatto |
| Photo: Jason Haberman |
Interscope Geffen A&M has brought on Cara Donatto as executive vice president, head of media strategy and communications. Donatto comes to Interscope from Atlantic Records, where she served as senior vice president, publicity, spearheading media campaigns for such artists as Bruno Mars, Janelle Monáe and Missy Elliot. She was previously director of media & artist relations at Island Def Jam Records. In her new role, Donatto will supervise communications strategy and execution for Interscope Geffen A&M and its associated labels, overseeing the publicity team and the company's diverse roster of artists.
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| Marcus Smith |
Communications consultancy Leidar has hired Marcus Smith as head of international reputation. Smith, who spent nearly 18 years at Weber Shandwick, occupying various senior roles in its UK/European corporate and public affairs team, comes to Leidar from reputation technology business Polecat, where he served as managing director, UK. He has also headed up the corporate communications team at international TV and broadband company Liberty Global. At Leidar he will focus on developing the firm’s reputation management proposition for international corporate and public affairs clients and leveraging its existing strengths, particularly across its Geneva, Brussels and London offices.
Eitan Bencuya, who has more than 20 years of technology PR experience, has signed on with Brunswick Group as a partner in its San Francisco office.
DGA Group has lined up the former US ambassadors to Qatar and Saudi Arabia as senior advisors to help clients navigate that politically complex region.
Narrative Strategies names Adam Silverstein as managing director in New York. Silverstein was most recently head of media relations & thought leadership at Scient Public Relations... Mission North brings on Alex Hunter as EVP of health and innovation... Baird & Warner, a family-owned independent real estate services company that serves the Chicago area, appoints Jeanette Cutler as CMO.
Greg Honan, who worked in the Biden White House as director of message planning and chief of staff for its office of communications, is joining public affairs firm Seven Letter as a managing director.
David Bassity, who was VP for football communications for the NFL’s Atlanta Falcons, will join the Big Ten Conference on July 20.
