Leo Burnett to outsource from India

Hit by the global economic slump, Leo Burnett one of the world's largest advertising agencies, is planning to make India a global outsourcing hub, as clients look at cutting costs.

On a week's visit to India to plan for business in 2009 and also to attend the wedding of India chairman Arvind Sharma's daughter, Tom Bernardin, chairman and chief executive officer, Leo Burnett Worldwide, announced changes in its global leadership council for a tighter integration of Asia Pacific with the Chicago headquarters.

Asia-Pacific president Michelle Kristula-Green has been promoted to become global human resources head based at its headquarters. Regional President Jarek Zubinski will take the post vacated by Kristula-Green and Arvind Sharma will become a part of the leadership council team to represent India.

"We want India and the Asia Pacific region to be very close to us and to have a tighter integration," Bernardin told Business Standard.