NEW DELHI — McDonald’s India has hired First Partners to handle the fast-food giant’s public relations in North and East India. First Partners will be responsible for strategic brand communications and crisis mitigation. The agency won the business in a competitive review.

SINGAPORE — AKA Asia has announced Leya Teo as managing director, following the departure of former managing partner Julia Wei earlier this year. Returning home to Singapore after nine years in China and Hong Kong, Teo was most recently VP at Edelman China, where she led a practice spanning the Shanghai and Beijing offices. Prior to her seven-year tenure with Edelman, Teo held senior roles at creative agencies in Hong Kong at JWT, and in Singapore at Cheil Worldwide.

HONG KONG — Sandpiper has promoted Kim Spear to deputy general manager of its Hong Kong office. Since joining the strategic communications and public affairs consultancy 18 months ago, Spear (pictured) has been instrumental in growing its Hong Kong clientele alongside general manager Natalie Siu. Having held senior roles at agencies in the Asia-Pacific region for 20 years, Spear has extensive international communications experience collaborating with clients on complex briefs spanning Greater China, Southeast Asia, Australasia and Europe.

SINGAPORE — Redhill has launched a fully integrated end-to-end book publishing service. This new offering provides in-depth, long-form storytelling options in conventional hardcover or paperback formats, as well as digital e-book and audio forms. Ranging from planning, writing, editing to formatting, and publishing to marketing, the suite of book publishing services has been designed to serve clients' editorial requirements. Redhill’s team of content writers, creative designers and developers have expertise across a number of book genres including biographies, autobiographies, memoirs, informative, business, fiction, nonfiction and ghost-writing services.

SYDNEY — Red Havas has hired Kelly Smith and Natalie Karaminas to its health and social communications teams respectively. Smith has been named ethical health director, as which she will focus on continuing to elevate excellence in the agency’s growing integrated digital and social work. She has more than 10 years’ experience working with organisations and stakeholders across the health sector, including pharmaceutical companies, patient advocacy groups, professional societies and government bodies. Karaminas, meantime, has joined the agency as a health and social account director. Karaminas has transferred within the group from the UK.