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| Shanghai's Sarah Chin goes to Los Angeles |
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This summer, 7,000 miles across the Pacific Ocean, Sarah Chin, consumer marketing head in Shanghai, began her one-week exchange program in the consumer-savvy Los Angeles office. She gained experience in different practice credentials, long-term and large client management, efficient and mature measurement, and office operational structure.
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| Sarah Chin from Shanghai receives a welcome package in Los Angeles |
"I was lucky enough to get this chance to spend a week in the Los Angeles office. It truly helped me understand more about U.S. market as well as the L.A. office's expertise (first hand rather than through conference calls and PowerPoint files) and inspired me in particular in the areas of client management and media skills.
“Special thanks goes to Samantha Sackin in L.A. and Lydia Lee, director of the Shanghai office, who set up an action-packed itinerary that gave me the chance to participate in various team meetings, office meetings, brainstorming sessions, social activities and even a potential client meeting!
I believe this cross-office experience is important to further enhance our collaboration. For example, I learned more about Panache, GH's Asian/Asian-American communications practice, from executive vice president Sharon Sim-Krause in San Francisco—and doing so gave me the sense that there is potential to bring Panache's expertise to some of our long-term clients in Asia. This could not have happened without this exchange program.
"The GH culture from office to office reinforces my belief in GH'ers. They are trust builders working in a talent-friendly and inspiring environment. I found that every team member was passionate and proactive toward his or her career and personal life, and I have seen this philosophy now in the China, L.A., New York and London offices. I am proud to be a GH'er!"
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| Beijing's Brad Burgess goes to Hong Kong |
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Brad Burgess, senior consultant in the Beijing office of GolinHarris, recently participated in the Asia Pacific Exchange Program, working for a few weeks with GH colleagues in Hong Kong.
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| John Morgan, regional managing director, Greater China, and Brad Burgess with GH'ers at an event in Hong Kong |
"In many ways, Hong Kong is the bridge between China and the West. It has enough of China to be culturally interesting, while possessing the speed and dynamism of Western culture. I am always curious about other markets in Asia, so when I learned about the exchange opportunity, Hong Kong was an easy choice. I simply wanted to see how things were done there.
"Anyone who has been to Hong Kong can appreciate how quickly things get done and the convenience of everything. The one thing I didn't quite expect was the diverse offering in our GH office. I had a chance to work on some very interesting projects—from cemetery promotion to offering etiquette training to senior banking executives! With such a wide skill-set, staff from various practices work with each other to ensure great results for clients.
"In addition to the interesting work that changes from day-to-day, one of the things that keeps me at GH is the people. Like Beijing folks, Hong Kong people are special. I like Beijing, but I like Hong Kong, too. They are two different slices of the same pie. What's great about working in this industry is that it is satisfying to the curious mind. As a Westerner, both Hong Kong and Beijing offer very different ways of approaching work and approaching the world. I remain grateful for being able to experience Greater China at this unprecedented time. There is no other place I would rather be. Thanks to GH for allowing me to have this chance."
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| "GH Ph.D." taps two from Asia Pacific |
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Two GH'ers in Asia Pacific, Shanghai's Vichy Liu and Hong Kong's Wade Lundin, were recently selected to participate in the firm's "GH Ph.D." program, an intensive course in the business of PR at our corporate headquarters in Chicago. Here, account director Vichy Liu shares her about experience with Breakthrough:
"This is one of my most special and unforgettable and experiences. I am so honored to have been chosen to attend this highly recognized program. Held by senior executives from different regions, only 25 professionals attended GH Ph.D. As one of the two representatives from Asia Pacific, I had mixed feelings of excitement and pressure as I stepped on the plane.
"This very intensive program was held for two days, from September 17 to 19, and it covered a wide variety of topics including business development, career development, strategic thinking, leadership development, financial management and more. During each session, we had a very experienced lecturer sharing his or her own experience and learned how to apply principles in real life. We learned to utilize resources more efficiently, approach customers more wisely and create value-added solutions for clients. Through the interactive activities, I have been able to adopt different ways to deliver client pitches, and I have absorbed many new ideas about the industry from people with different backgrounds.
"This short trip gave me a lot of new ideas and helped me refine my professional skills. But best of all, I built great relationships with the other 24 participants. I would like to take this moment to thank John Morgan, our regional managing director, Greater China; Lydia Lee, director, Shanghai, who nominated me to join this successful program; Gary Rudnick, EVP, regional managing director; and Tara Pendell, who gave such warm hospitality in Chicago and brought this program to life."
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