LONDON — WE Communications has been appointed by consulting, technology services and digital transformation giant Capgemini to handle its international group PR, after a competitive pitch.

The account is an expansion of the existing UK retainer won by WE in 2017, also after a competitive pitch, when it replaced The Red Consultancy, which had worked with Capgemini for a decade.

The international account, which had previously been held by Weber Shandwick, will be run primarily out of the UK, with some support from WE’s team in the US. It is thought to be WE’s biggest UK client.

WE’s brief is to focus on building Capgemini’s reputation as a global leader through pan-EMEA and international media relations, across its entire portfolio.

The 50-year-old French-listed consulting and IT services group employs more than 200,000 people in 40 countries and had revenue of €12.79bn in 2017.

Capgemini’s global public relations director Sam Connatty said: “Following a successful partnership with WE in the UK over the last year, we’re pleased to expand our PR focus together internationally. WE’s passion, creativity and understanding of our business, in addition to their expertise in our target sectors stood out during the competitive pitch process.”

WE UK managing director Ruth Allchurch (pictured), who joined the agency in June this year, said: “There is a real opportunity for Capgemini to thrive in a position of advisor, advocate, analyst and evangelist for change for audiences affected by technology-driven disruption.

“After a really collaborative, productive partnership with Capgemini UK to date, we’re now ready and raring to go on this expanded brief. This win also underscores WE’s capabilities as a truly global, integrated agency, playing to our strengths in corporate and financial services comms in a fast-changing market where threats and opportunities are often closely interlinked,” she said.