Leo Burnett has reorganised its Hong Kong and China operations in
the face of rapid expansion of its China business and an increasingly
competitive market environment in Hong Kong.
However, while staffing levels in the agency's Guangzhou, Shanghai and
Beijing offices have been increased, about 20 people in Hong Kong have
been laid off because they do not fit in with the new structure.
The reorganisation, described as client-driven, involves strengthening
the senior management team; Mr Dennis Wong has been promoted to chief
executive officer overseeing business development and strategy while Mr
Eddie Booth has been named chairman and executive creative director with
the responsibility of ensuring the highest creative output possible.
In addition, each of its China offices will for the first time have
individual MDs. Mr Ben Tsang, who has been running and building the
China operation for the last three years, has been named operations
director China and Guangzhou MD. He is also acting Beijing MD.
Doug Pearce, previously general manager of Leo Burnett Melbourne,
becomes the Shanghai MD.
And Mr Mark Blears, the Hong Kong GM, now takes full responsibility in
running the Hong Kong operation, including all China business out of
Hong Kong.
Burnett is also rolling out three specialised business units:
interactive, retail and direct marketing.
Mr Booth said the bolstering of the China operations was due to the fact
that many clients who used to oversee their China business from Hong
Kong are now relocating to the mainland such as Coca-Cola.
"China has reached the stage where individual markets within the country
are becoming more distinctive; Shanghai is different from Guangzhou and
those two places are different from Hong Kong.
"The goal for each individual office from now on is to produce work that
is relevant to its market and to be the best individual agency in its
city.
"This is why we have MDs in each of the China office in order to empower
those offices to do what is necessary to achieve the goals without
having to go through Hong Kong all the time," Mr Booth told MEDIA.
On the 20 staff who were laid off in Hong Kong, Mr Blears described the
move as a purely business decision aimed at ensuring future growth.
"In moving forward, we have tried to think about where the market will
be in five years time and to that end we have moved now to build and
develop structures and services.
"If we implemented the plan only halfway, we would have the worst
structure in the world," said Mr Blears.
