HONG KONG — FleishmanHillard has consolidated leadership of its mainland China and Hong Kong operations under a new leadership team headed by president and senior partner Rachel Catanach.

Catanach, who has spent the past decade as MD of FleishmanHillard in Hong Kong, will chair the newly-created Greater China leadership council, and oversee the firm's operations across its various markets in the region.

Li Hong, who has led FleishmanHillard in China for the past 15 years, becomes chairman of the firm's China presence, and will "continue to play an important advisory role in the agency’s future in Greater China", according to a statement from the firm.

Catanach and Li Hong are joined on the leadership council by Beijing and Shanghai market leaders, Jerry Zou and Miranda Cai respectively, who continue to report to Li Hong. 

In addition to that quartet, the leadership council also features expanded roles for Yu Li (who assumes responsibility for Greater China talent development); Patrick Yu (who will add Greater China financial services leadership to his existing Asia-PAcific remit); and Judy Wei (who now oversees Greater China consumer products and services).

Other members of the FH Greater China Leadership Council include: Lichi (Rachel) Hsueh, managing director and partner, client services for China, based in Shanghai; Geoff Bilbrough, deputy GM  and partner, FleishmanHillard Hong Kong; Yisi Liu, deputy GM and SVP, FleishmanHillard Shanghai; and Laura Tyson, SVP and head of corporate affairs , FleishmanHillard Hong Kong.

"Given the individual success of our mainland and Hong Kong operations, the scene is set to more formally unite our Greater China assets behind a single leadership team focused on optimizing opportunities, fueling careers on a bigger playing field and bringing a larger set of resources to bear on client remits," said FleishmanHillard Asia-Pacific president Lynne Anne Davis.

"Rachel is supremely qualified to extend her phenomenal record of success in Hong Kong and lead collaboration across Greater China on behalf of clients," added Davis. "As head of Greater China, she will oversee new business development, expanded offerings for existing clients, and strategies for differentiating new products and services to seize market opportunities."