Agency

Havas Red Names Joanne Ng Executive Director of Social Practice

Published on August 14, 2026

Havas Red has promoted Joanne Ng to Executive Director, Social, putting her in charge of the Australian earned-first PR and content agency’s national social media practice, per Campaign Brief.

Ng has worked as a social strategist across the agency’s client roster since 2021 and will continue leading the full social account for Havas Red’s largest client, Toyota Motor Corporation Australia. In her new role, she will oversee strategy, innovation and client delivery across social media, Influencer Marketing, creator partnerships and content for specialist teams in Sydney, Melbourne and Brisbane.

Ng succeeds Stuart Hood, the outgoing Executive Director, Social, who is moving into a contracting role at the agency.

“Joanne has played a pivotal role in our social offering over the past four years and has consistently demonstrated the strategic thinking, client leadership and commercial acumen required to lead the practice into its next chapter,” said Shane Russell, CEO of Havas Red Australia. “Her appointment comes at an exciting time for Havas Red as we continue to invest in our capabilities and expand our integrated offering to meet growing client demand across social, influencer and content.”

Ng framed her mandate around deepening the strategic role of social within the agency’s broader offering. “My vision is to continue evolving Havas Red’s social offering beyond content creation and channel management, building a practice where social intelligence informs communications strategy, influencer and creator partnerships drive credibility, and content creates meaningful audience engagement,” she said. “While technologies and platforms will continue to evolve, the brands that succeed will be those that combine innovation with genuine human insight and cultural relevance.”

The promotion follows Havas Red’s earlier launch this year of CRed, a creator and influencer practice built to shift brand partnerships from transactional content toward longer-term, community-led engagement.