Franca named VP of Latin American Markets for PR Newswire.

PR Newswire has appointed Marco Franca to lead its expansion in the Latin American region.

A vice president reporting to Chief Executive Officer Charles Gregson, Franca, 44, will oversee integration of the recently acquired Notilog media monitoring and analysis business with PR Newswire’s existing services that support public relations and investor relations professionals in the region.

“Marco comes to PR Newswire with significant operational expertise in the region, and solid experience in identifying key acquisition opportunities for growing Latin American businesses,” said Gregson. “PR Newswire’s Latin American practice has enjoyed great success over the past 10 years, and Marco is the person to build upon this success and create an in-region presence second to none.”

PR Newswire was the first commercial newswire to establish offices in Brazil, Argentina and Mexico to serve the communications needs of local organizations. In July, the company completed its acquisition of Notilog, the leading Latin American media monitoring firm.

Franca will be responsible for PR Newswire’s strategic business operations in Latin America, including driving existing business and identifying growth opportunities through acquisition and organic means. In addition to managing operations in Argentina, Brazil and Mexico, he will expand businesses spanning Central and South America — Bolivia, Chile, Colombia, Costa Rica, Ecuador, El Salvador, Guatemala, Nicaragua, Panama, Paraguay, Suriname, Uruguay, Venezuela — and the Caribbean.

“The communications marketplace in Latin America is growing exponentially each year,” said Franca. “Latin American organizations have increasingly sophisticated communications needs, and it is my goal to make sure that PR Newswire’s in-region services continue to meet these needs.

“The tools that we currently offer and will continue to build upon — news distribution, media monitoring and intelligence services — allow communications professionals — both in-house and on the agency side — to focus on their strategic communications programs, while leaving the tactical implementation of the strategy to us,” said Franca.