Sorour replaces Cairbre Sugrue who left the firm in July this year. Sorour has led WE’s Johannesburg office since it opened in 2010 and will move to London early next year.
In addition James Wilson has been hired from Microsoft to take up Sorour’s role as general manager for South Africa. Wilson will join WE in January after being a client of the agency for the past five years.
At Microsoft Wilson was public relations lead for Africa & Indian Ocean Islands. In his new role he will work with WE’s clients in South Africa and across the African continent including Nissan, WeChat, Microsoft, Mustek and SolarCentury.
Both Sorour and Wilson will report to Chris Talago, general manager, EMEA.
Talago said: "Today’s business environment requires a global mindset along with integrated thinking. Marcus and James both bring a strong track record to their next roles with leadership and a talent for growing businesses."
WE has also appointed new deputy general managers in South Africa and the UK, with Sarah Kobus and Nick Woods respectively. Both will play a key role in aligning the two regions, which currently work closely across a number of clients including Eli Lilly and Microsoft. The appointments reflect recent account wins in the regions including Arqiva, Brightcove, Tommy’s, Digital Shoreditch, Nissan and WeChat.
