WPP's Portland unit loses China chief

<P>Portland China's newly-promoted managing partner Louis Cheng, who is credited with whipping WPP's three-year-old outdoor operation into shape, has resigned. </P> <P>Cheng will leave in early August after two years in the role. No replacement has been found, but GroupM China CEO Bessie Lee said Tony Ha, head of operation, and Thomas Chan, head of client service, would split Cheng's duties in the interim.</P> <P>"Louis tripled billings and staff during his two years of leadership of Portland," said Lee. "Portland was ranked fourth when Louis took over in July 2006 and is now the top ranked with over Rmb 600 million (US$75 million) in billings. Louis restructured the team to make it more efficient and more effective in both management and client servicing."<BR>Cheng said he plans to launch a business, which will have "a remote relationship with advertising".</P> <P> </P>