Fleishman-Hillard Sydney announced the appointment of Scott Rhodie as vice president, Digital Media, to lead the firm’s digital media offerings in Australia. A digital public relations and social media specialist, Rhodie brings a wealth of experience in public relations, journalism and digital communications to the Fleishman-Hillard team.

Rhodie started his communications career as a journalist for British tabloid The Sun, and has become a prominent character amongst Sydney’s social media scene and is one of the organisers of Digital Citizens, an organisation dedicated to sharing knowledge and discussion of social, political, ethical and professional issues related to new technologies and the social web.

Walter Jennings, general manager of Fleishman-Hillard Sydney, said the appointment better equips Fleishman-Hillard to respond to clients’ growing demands for digital and social media. “Fleishman-Hillard is very excited to welcome Scott Rhodie to this role,” Jennings said. “He is one of Australia’s most prominent and vocal netizens, and he has great perspectives on how to navigate in the digital world. Scott further strengthens our offering in Australia, as he joins an established global network of digital communicators.”

Rhodie joins a regional digital and social media team that includes such experts as Napoleon Biggs, who heads up Digital Integration across Asia Pacific for Fleishman-Hillard and is based in Hong Kong.
In his most recent position, Rhodie created the new digital and social media agency House Party within HotHouse. Previously, Rhodie worked as a senior account manager at Zing Public Relations, working on social media campaigns and online public relations for Lego, McDonald’s, Optus and Toshiba. Earlier in his career, Rhodie worked as a journalist in the U.K. for publications including The Sun and Scotland on Sunday.

Follow Scott Rhodie on Twitter @ScottRhodie