Weber moves Russell to Beijing

Russell, who begins his new role on February 1, will provide senior counsel to the agency's China clients, and reports to regional president Andrew Pirie. As the Brussels CEO for the past six years, Russell also headed the firm's European public affairs practice. "John's experience advising multinational companies and governments on complex, cross- border corporate and public affairs issues is formidable, and will add a powerful new dimension to our service offering in both China and across Asia-Pacific," said Pirie. "With many companies seeking to expand their regional communications profile, there is a growing market for managing regulatory and public affairs issues and corporate reputations." The firm has also hired Jessica Lee to succeed Nikki Lin as Taiwan general manager. Lee arrives from her previous position as Asia-Pacific communications head for global chemicals group Rohm and Haas Company. Lin, meanwhile, is transferring to Beijing to become director, focusing on senior client service, and reporting to China managing director David Liu. "These strategic staff moves demonstrate that Weber Shandwick is committed to putting on the ground the right mix of people to drive our clients business across the booming Greater China region," said Pirie.