NEW YORK, Feb. 6, 2014 /PRNewswire/ -- Global public relations leader Porter Novelli announced today that it has expanded its agency network in Europe through a partnership in Ireland with Dublin-based Drury Communications. Drury will join the agency's global network effective immediately, and will rebrand as Drury Porter Novelli.

"We have had the pleasure of working with Drury for many years, as we share a number of clients across various industries, including consumer, food, health care and technology," said Sally Ward, president, Europe, Middle East and Africa (EMEA), Porter Novelli, and managing director of the company's London office. "Drury is a leader in Ireland with core strengths in the services necessary to help our clients expand and grow their businesses in the important Irish market. We are delighted to welcome them into our global network."

For more than 20 years Drury has advised on and delivered effective communications strategies for clients across a wide range of sectors and industries. Drury operates across five key practice areas including corporate communications; consumer and lifestyle; financial; health care communications; project communications; and public affairs.

"Drury is joining a leading multinational network with the resources, expertise and reach to serve major global brands," said Anne-Marie Curran, managing director of Drury. "Porter Novelli has the passion and hands-on senior leadership that pairs brilliantly with our own entrepreneurial spirit. On behalf of the team at Drury we look forward to a long-term, prosperous and mutually beneficial relationship."

As part of the new partnership, Ward has been appointed a non-executive director of Drury.

Drury's areas of expertise also include brand communications, B2B communications, corporate responsibility, community relations, crisis management, event management, executive visibility, idea generation workshops, industrial relations, internal communications, litigation communications, media relations, media training, online communications, reputation management, social and digital media, sponsorship support and strategic planning.

"It is critical that we have a network presence in key markets where our clients need us," added Ward. "We are seeing more and more opportunities coming from Ireland both in terms of new business as well as expansion from existing clients. With Drury we have a partner with the experience, expertise and enthusiasm for building business that perfectly matches our own."

Both Drury and Porter Novelli are owned by New York-headquartered Omnicom Group, Inc.

About Drury Communications
Established in 1989, Drury has grown over the past 25 years to become one of the most successful public relations agencies in the Irish marketplace. Drury operates in five key practice areas: corporate and financial; brand communications and lifestyle; health care; project management; and public affairs.

About Porter Novelli
Porter Novelli is one of the world's leading public relations agencies. With 90 offices in nearly 60 countries, Porter Novelli delivers best-in-class service to clients around the globe. As the agency that pioneered social marketing, Porter Novelli's heritage is grounded in influence - motivating people to change deeply ingrained behaviors that are rooted in cultural and social norms. This is achieved by identifying and activating against key insights that drive transformational change-- going beyond just "solving a problem". The result is greater than just influencing people - Porter Novelli makes them believe.

For additional information, please visit www.porternovelli.com. Porter Novelli is a part of Diversified Agency Services, a division of Omnicom Group Inc.

About Diversified Agency Services
Diversified Agency Services (DAS), a division of Omnicom Group Inc. (NYSE:OMC) (www.omnicomgroup.com), manages Omnicom's holdings in a variety of marketing communications disciplines. DAS includes over 200 companies, which operate through a combination of networks and regional organizations, serving international and local clients through more than 700 offices in 71 countries.

Contact:
Catherine Sullivan
catherine.sullivan@porternovelli.com
(212) 601-8315

SOURCE Porter Novelli