Edelman PR Worldwide has rebuilt the senior ranks of its financial
division by recruiting a number of financial PR specialists.
The UK office has drafted in Curtis Fox as investor relations director
to head a team of around ten. Prior to Edelman, Fox was a partner at
Brussels-based investor relations consultancy Kuhn Partners.
Kuhn Partners handles investor relations across Europe for some of the
largest European and US companies, including Ameritech, AT&T, Compaq,
Elf Aquitaine and Vivendi.
In New York, Hollis Rafkin-Sax was this week recruited as senior
managing director for the division worldwide. She joins a team of 35 in
New York, after running her own consultancy, the Chatsworth Group. She
was previously a managing director at Gavin Anderson.
Gustavo Bernhoeft has been recruited as investor relations director in
Brazil, reporting to the local country general manager, Vivien
Hirsch.
Edelman’s financial division suffered earlier this year when it lost key
consultants (PR Week, 23 July).
The division’s MD, Carol Ruth, who was based in New York, left to start
her own agency. Andrew Dewar, a senior financial consultant in the Paris
office, also left to start up on his own. And European financial PR head
Kirsty Macmaster left in February.
Before the departures, Edelman’s regional and country financial PR heads
reported to Ruth, whereas they now report to their individual country
MDs.
Edelman London managing director John Mahony said the new recruits were
employed to strengthen the agency’s investor relations expertise as
opposed to financial media relations.
’In London, we already have strong financial services and financial
media, and now we are going to strengthen our investor relations across
Europe,’ said Mahony.