Porter Novelli on Wednesday named an Atlanta executive as head of its North America public relations operations.

Brad MacAfee, a 13-year company veteran who is senior partner and managing director in Atlanta, will continue to lead the local office in assuming his new role over operations in the U.S. and Canada on Jan. 1, the company said Wednesday.

MacAfee is a member of Porter Novelli’s executive committee and talent advisory board and is executive client leader in the firm’s technology, health care and government sectors. He has also served as interim managing director in San Francisco and Chicago.

“I am encouraging our managing directors to develop teams that think big, take risks and deliver strategy that exceeds the expectations of our clients and the market,” MacAfee said in a statement.

The public relations firm has 90 offices in nearly 60 countries.