Public Relations: H&K reshuffles China line-up with two roles

Esmond Quek takes on the Beijing role, joining from a previous position as director of international clients at Ogilvy & Mather Beijing, while David Zhao has been relocated from H&K's Beijing tech practice to head Shanghai.

Meanwhile, Smith has confirmed that he will return to H&K Canada, where he is expected to head the public affairs and corporate communications practice in Toronto.

Smith explained that the handover to two local GMs was "always the plan", but also confirmed that the arrival of H&K North Asia president and CEO James Heimowitz precipitated the move. "I think James' arrival allowed the handover to happen," he said.

Smith is expected to leave the office by mid-September, after spending two years in charge of H&K's China operation. "My mandate was to come in and rebuild the business and put it back on solid ground," he added

According to Heimowitz, the changes were a necessary response to this business growth. "I would call it upgrading our capabilities," said Heimowitz.

"Business got too big for one person to handle - we wanted to have more senior management capabilities in each marketplace."

Heimowitz points to new business in the shape of Tsingtao Brewery, PetroChina and the State Council Information Office, along with new hires in the public affairs and marketing practices to illustrate this growth. "Sometimes we deal with highly sensitive client needs and it's better for us to create separate client teams," added Heimowitz.

Quek will manage day-to-day operations of the Beijing office, while also leading growth and strategy. At Ogilvy, Quek led marketing and advertising consulting for a global client roster that included Motorola, Kraft, Airbus and Kimberly Clark.

"I'm a complete marketing communications kind of guy," said Quek. "The last frontier is PR." Quek's track record also includes a stint as VP and regional head of marketing at ABN Amro Asset Management Asia Pacific, along with managerial positions at BAT, Wunderman and Ketchum.

Zhao, meanwhile, was previously in charge of communications strategy for the agency's key global tech clients, such as Hewlett-Packard and GSMA.