Polka Yu Named Deputy to BCW APAC PresidentMarch 10, 2021

HONG KONG SAR, MARCH 10, 2021 – BCW (Burson Cohn & Wolfe), a leading global communications agency, today announced the appointment of Polka Yu as Deputy to the APAC President, and Joe Peng as Chief Digital Officer, BCW Asia-Pacific. Both assume their new roles with immediate effect and will continue to report to Matt Stafford, President, BCW Asia-Pacific.

Yu’s expanded role will include oversight of BCW’s Hong Kong, Malaysia and Indonesia markets. She will also work with Stafford to implement the next phase of BCW’s three-year growth strategy in APAC built around investments in creative technology, research, and content production; and leveraging the agency’s leadership in reputation management, Asia-based multinationals, and the information and communications technology, consumer and healthcare sectors.

Peng will spearhead the optimization of the region’s core digital innovation backbone, including establishing new digital platforms of excellence around data analytics and artificial intelligence.

“I have worked with Polka and Joe since we were humble mid-level consultants back in 2008,” said Stafford. “Together with their fantastic teams, they have played critical roles in our company’s evolution to a truly integrated and digital innovation agency in this region. This transformation was a key contributor to the strong growth BCW has delivered in Asia-Pacific over the past three years.”

“It is such an exciting time to be working at BCW,” commented Yu. “Our efforts to bring together the best industry talent to tell powerful and precise stories that move people on behalf of our clients, deliver impressive business results despite the COVID-19 disruption, and innovate to set new standards for the future of communications have paid off. But there is still much to do, and I am beyond thrilled to be part of the driving force in this next chapter.”

“BCW innovated in response to the digital transformation needs of clients brought on by COVID-19 at a scale and speed we never thought possible,” added Peng. “Looking to the year ahead, our priority is to maintain the quality and grow the range of BCW’s digital services we deliver at a regional level to help our clients gain a competitive advantage.”

Yu has worked for a decade in Beijing, Shanghai and Guangzhou helping MNCs with their China campaigns. After relocating to Hong Kong from mainland China in 2014, she shifted her focus to supporting Chinese companies with their going-global strategies. Since 2018, she has led BCW’s regional integrated communications practice that used insights and creative technology to develop compelling campaigns, many of which have won many prominent industry awards.

Over the past 15 years, Peng has delivered award-winning digital media campaigns for clients across industries including aviation, computer, cosmetics, education, entertainment, finance, semiconductor, and manufacturing. Earlier in his career, Peng led digital innovation at Burson-Marsteller and Cohn & Wolfe.

BCW was named Large Regional PR Agency of the Year at PRovoke Media’s 2020 SABRE Asia-Pacific Awards.