Hou will start work in September and report to Jessie Lin, CEO, McCann Worldgroup Greater China.
She will be tasked with driving the agency's thought leadership unit, McCann Truth Central China and with sharpening the agency's approach to strategic planning across all disciplines.
One of China's first generation of local planners, Hou joins with 14 years of experience in strategy planning across a wide portfolio of accounts including McDonald's, Pfizer, Shanghai Volkswagen and TsingTao. In her role as head of planning at TBWA, she led key cultural studies on China on topics such as youth, women and luxury.
"China is an increasingly important market for many of our regional and global clients," commented Richard McCabe, regional planning director, McCann Worldgroup, Asia-Pacific. "Hou's experience, ideas and deep understanding of how brands and consumers engage today will be invaluable in creating the best value proposition for our clients.”