Global independent marketing and communications firm, FINN Partners, reported that FINN Asia, now approximately 80 people in the region, has seen 20% revenue and 20% talent growth in 2021 over 2020. On the heels of strong momentum, FINN announced today the expansion of its global footprint with the opening of a new FINN office in Beijing, as well as two key executive promotions in Singapore.
“FINN’s momentum in the Asia Pacific region is a testament to the strength of our leadership team, integrated capabilities and trusted partnerships with clients across a breadth of sectors, from technology and B2B to consumer, lifestyle, travel, hospitality and wellness,” said Peter Finn, CEO and founding managing partner. “This is a strategic market for FINN and expanding our presence and leadership bench will position us to continue our growth trajectory and serve clients across the spectrum of business needs.”
FINN Opens Beijing Office; Hires Jason Cao as Market Leader
Building on the agency’s fast-growing Asian presence, FINN expands its footprint in China with a new office in Beijing led by Communications veteran Jason Cao. As Senior Partner, Cao is tasked with driving growth for FINN in the health, technology and consumer sectors in China. With over two decades’ experience in corporate communications, crisis management, digital marketing and training, Cao has held key leadership roles in Greater China with renowned international PR firms, working with MNCs, SOE, media, regulators and NGOs by navigating the complexity of corporate affairs and issues, as well as serving inbound and outbound clients. He has counseled C-suite leaders and communications teams in various industries including high-tech and B2B, healthcare and pharma, FMCG and hospitality, with clients such as Microsoft, Honeywell, Johnson Controls, OTIS, Eaton, Osram, Ecolab, Texas Instruments, ARM, Linkedin, Amazon, Oracle, Business French, Bloomberg, KPMG, Bayer, Merck, Takeda, Volvo Group, Caterpillar, Syngenta, Invisalign, L’Oreal, Beyond Meat, Lenovo, ZTE mobile, and TCL.
“Beijing is obviously a very important global market and one that we’ve been looking to enter for quite some time now,” said Cathy Chon, Managing Partner, FINN Partners. “We were very fortunate to be introduced to Jason, who has had great success throughout his career, particularly in client relations and business development. We are very excited about the possibilities for this new office.”
Singapore Office Fuels Strong Growth; Bolsters Leadership with Key Promotions
FINN is also expanding its leadership bench on the heels of record growth in its Singapore office. In 2021, FINN Singapore recorded its best-performing year to date, with an over 25% growth in fees year on year. The impressive performance is attributed to the agency’s strategic restructuring to meet increasing client demand for integrated marketing services, encompassing strategy, public relations, digital, content, analytics and technology solutions. Integrated Marketing Communications comprise approximately 75% of Finn Partners Singapore’s overall business.
Said Naeema Ismail, Managing Partner, FINN Singapore, “There has been a confluence of factors driving real and needed change in our industry. An ever-increasing mix of paid and owned channels contrasted with a diminishing traditional, earned media pool, has increased the need for marketing professionals to keep up with a multitude of platforms and technologies. FINN’s integrated model has driven tremendous growth over the past several years, including new clients in 2021 such as Accenture, Cybereason, Engie Impact, General Electric, Sodexo and Trend Micro. We offer the ability to not only create exciting campaigns, but to also measure effectiveness in this intense business climate.”
To support this momentum, FINN Singapore has promoted two senior executives. Safina Samian has been named Partner and Head of Integrated Marketing Communications, from her previous role as Vice President. Samian has an enviable portfolio of in-house and agency roles over more than 20 years, having held leadership roles agency-side where she led key accounts in corporate, healthcare, aviation, finance and retail. With a passion for disruptive technology, she has worked with leading technology brands such as AT&T, Avaya, Dell/Dell Technologies, Google, Salesforce and SAP.
FINN Singapore has also promoted industry veteran Vincent Leong from Vice President to Partner. Leong leads an Integrated Marketing Communications team focused on supporting technology business clients across Asia Pacific, including Alcatel-Lucent Enterprise, Commvault, Denodo, Nutanix and Sensormatic Solutions. Prior to joining FINN in 2013, Leong served as Asia Pacific Japan PR Lead at Akamai Technologies, Director of Corporate Communications for Southeast Asia at SAP, and held roles at Lotus Development (currently IBM Software) and Tyco Fire and Security. Early in his career, he worked as a journalist covering healthcare, healthtech and wellness news.