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It may be hard to believe, but we are entering the final stretch of yet another year. Although it’s rather early to be writing an annual review just yet, we’ve recently completed our Network of the Year entry for the forthcoming Asia Pacific PR Awards, so our recent achievements are top of mind.
This year has indeed been a breakthrough period for GolinHarris in Asia Pacific. We made great strides to enter the “major league” of networks in the region—winning prestigious new client assignments, achieving solid revenue growth, consolidating our geographic footprint and developing new services to exploit future trends in public relations. As a consequence, we decided to enter the main Network of the Year category rather than the Mid-Sized Network category, in which we were runners-up last year.
At the same time, we remained true to our distinctive core principles of client partnerships built on trust, a collaborative culture in which people are the priority and a client value offering based on innovation and ideas.
Our client roster is a powerful blend of global, regional and local office relationships. We take great pride developing deep partnerships with our clients that stand the test of time. An indication: of our top five Asia Pacific clients from three years ago, three still rank in our top five and a fourth remains a client. We continue to strengthen our relationships with our biggest clients, with top five client revenue for 2007 forecast to grow more than 20% year on year. This revenue growth has been underpinned by great client work, as indicated by a string of global, regional and local awards for creative and effective PR campaigns.
We’ve also won prestigious new client assignments including The Dow Chemical Company, Merck, Toys “R” Us, and Singapore’s Council for the Third Age.
Our China business has grown exponentially, with new clients reinforcing our agency strengths in both corporate communications and consumer marketing. A key feature has been helping brands introduce themselves to the huge China consumer market—unveiling the first Toys “R” Us store in China, launching authentic Broadway entertainment shows such as the hit musical “42nd Street” and showcasing Cimarron, a renowned fashion brand from Spain.
Our commitment to a culture that puts people first is also evident. From new hires to recent promotions, training and development initiatives and exchange programs, our people are very positive about the agency’s prospects, as reflected in our annual staff survey.
All in all, a fantastic performance for which I would like to thank all our people for their dedication and hard work—and of course our wonderful clients for their loyalty and support.
Fingers crossed that the award judges agree!
Andrew Pirie
Regional Managing Director, Asia Pacific
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