CHICAGO — Finn Partners has appointed Christopher Bona as partner in the agency's health practice, reflecting its continued growth across the Midwest. Bona, a veteran of Chicago-area pharma, medical device and health/tech clients, brings more than 20 years of professional expertise to Finn Partners, whose Midwest health team serves clients regionally and nationally with comprehensive digital health communications. His experience includes leadership roles at GE Healthcare's Detection & Guidance Solutions, Baxter International, Inc. and Abbott.


NEW YORK – Zach Silber, formerly the New York Observer’s political director, has joined Kivvit as its first chief innovation officer. Silber will be leading the development of Kivvit’s emerging capabilities in areas including proprietary services, data and technology. He will work across Kivvit offices in New York, Chicago, Washington, New Jersey and Miami.


LOS ANGELES — Bruce Wallin, the longtime Robb Report editorial director, has been tapped to lead the firm C&R’s new content division. The division is centered C&R Content, a new full-service studio serving clients in the luxury hospitality and real estate industries. The studio offers digital editorial, native advertising, custom publishing and video production.


NEW YORK — Sarah Fox has joined Padilla as a VP in the agency’s health practice. Fox has experience working with numerous pharmaceutical and biotech companies across the life cycle of brands and R&D, including Daiichi Sankyo, GSK, Merck, Sanofi Pasteur, UCB, among others. She has led public service campaigns, public-private partnerships, corporate thought leadership initiatives, health policy communication, targeted consumer and health care provider education programming, and regulatory and data communication.


NEW YORK — Kate Mitchell, most recently a Weber Shandwick group manager, has joined APCO Worldwide a senior associate director in its food, consumer products and retail practice.  Mitchell has nearly a decade of industry experience. Before joining Weber in 2013, she worked as an MSLGroup account executive.

NEW YORK — The agency consultancy Prosper Group has added Chevon Hicks, a digital and social media specialist, to its roster of strategic advisors. Hicks has led campaigns for brands including ABC, Amazon Originals, Beats by Dre and Pepsi. He also is an adjunct professor at USC, where he teaches game interface design.

ANNAPOLIS — Crosby Marketing Communications has made two new hires — Kaya Simonson and Fabiana Cuellar, both of whom are associate integration managers. Both will be based in Crosby’s Washington office and help manage several programs for agencies within the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services. Simonson holds a Master’s degree in public health from George Washington University. Cuellar recently graduated from the University of Maryland, College Park, with a BA in communications.


SKILLMAN, NEW JERSEY — The Philadelphia Chapter of PRSA has elected John F. Kouten, CEO of JFK Communications, its 2018 president. Kouten has been a PRSA member for more than 25 years. And in addition to his service to the Philadelphia chapter, Kouten has also served the New York and New Jersey PRSA chapters.