Speyside Group, a leading global emerging markets corporate affairs and public policy consultancy, announced the appointment of Saskia Kendall as Chief Operating Officer of its Asia Pacific business. The appointment follows the continued fast growth of its fully-integrated business in the region across core specialist sectors including healthcare and digital/disruptive technology.
Working from the Singapore hub office, Saskia will be working with Ian Herbison, Speyside’s Singapore-based Chief Executive Officer to continue this momentum, overseeing the group’s extensive network of Asia Pacific offices that drive policy, stakeholder engagement and communications activities. This includes on-the-ground presence in nine out 10 markets in Southeast Asia.
Saskia brings nearly two decades of experience working across policy, press and public affairs. She spent the last three years building the multi-award winning Sandpiper Health business across Asia Pacific. She also spent six years at The King’s Fund, an influential think tank in the United Kingdom, managing their media and stakeholder engagement on a wide number of policy issues. Her clients have included many of the major pharmaceutical companies, start-ups, government and charities.
Commenting on the appointment, Ian Herbison, CEO of Speyside Group, said: “We are delighted to have Saskia join us, bringing extra weight to our senior team in the region. Her background in policy, public affairs and communications fits very well with our business and will enable her to provide the regional oversight that is so important to client accounts. She will help manage our senior regional and local teams to be able to continue to deliver our strategic advice for clients, as well as implement impactful programmes and award-winning campaigns.”
Saskia Kendall, COO of Speyside Asia Pacific, said: “I am thrilled to be joining such an expert team. The business has gone from strength to strength in Asia Pacific and it is easy to see why. With companies continually wanting to enter the region and grow their investments, understanding the environment in which they are operating is key to their success. The team is adept at being able to identify the key issues and opportunities that will have most impact for clients and have been delivering creative campaigns to meet these. I look forward to being part of the dynamic team and contributing to Speyside’s continued growth in the region.”