Hill+Knowlton Strategies (H+K), international public relations agency, has today announced the appointment of Carmen Bell as a Director in Brussels. With a compelling international profile, Bell reinforces the senior leadership of the agency’s thriving Brussels office as it continues to grow and support its clients through public affairs strategic communications and reputation management challenges.
Bell brings to H+K more than 12 years’ experience in EU public affairs, with a strong background in financial services, digital and sustainability policy, transport and media. She joins H+K after three years at Portland Communications (formerly GPLUS), before which she had contributed to the expansion of Global Counsel’s Brussels office as its EU policy practice lead. She has also spent several years representing industry body Insurance Europe in EU-level expert groups and helping steer its 2015 campaign for the UN Paris Agreement on Climate Change.
“Carmen is a great addition to our team not just in Brussels but globally”, said Melanie Faithfull Kent, H+K Belgium CEO and Senior Vice President, Continental Europe. “Her international profile and unique blend of skillsets, expertise and education are a superb addition to our advisory capabilities as we seek to help CEOs navigate the highly complex business transition and regulation issues as reputation management and ESG strategies become increasingly intertwined.”
Bell is a qualified lawyer and practiced civil litigation and dispute resolution in the US for five years before moving to Belgium. On joining H+K she said: “I’m excited to join H+K at a time when the world is rapidly changing and businesses need to adapt to digital and green transitions. These are not just at the very core of the EU’s policy priorities but are strategic imperatives for business across the world. I will bring my deep knowledge and experience in these areas to help our clients navigate these complex transitions, and leverage my international background to help strengthen H+K’s transatlantic offer.”
Bell holds a JD from the Villanova University School of Law (Pennsylvania, US); an LLM in International Business Law from Queen Mary University of London (UK); a BA in Government and Russian Studies from the University of Virginia (US); and a certificate of study in European Economic Law and Constitutional Law of the European Union from the Katholieke Universiteit Leuven in Belgium. She chairs the British Chamber of Commerce EU’s Internal Market Committee. An American and Peruvian national, she is proficient in English, Dutch and Spanish.
About Hill+Knowlton Strategies
Hill+Knowlton Strategies, Inc. is one of the world’s leading global public relations firms, partnering with local, multinational and global clients. H+K has over 80 offices in more than 40 markets, as well as an extensive associate network, that drives growth for clients, helps them manage risk, and defends and improves their reputations. Recent innovations include I-ACT, the Intelligence + Advisory Communications Team, Smart Media, an evolved approach to earned media, and Influencer+, a private influencer network.
Headquartered in New York, the firm is part of WPP, the world’s largest communications services company. For more information about H+K, visit our website and follow us on Twitter, LinkedIn, Facebook and Instagram.