Suman Hughes has been promoted to senior vice president and head of communications for Europe at Mastercard, succeeding Jim Issokson, who recently retired after two decades with the company.Hughes will lead Mastercard’s communications team across Europe, overseeing corporate affairs, reputation, issues management, product communications, brand, employee communications and social media. Mastercard employs around 9,000 people across 30 offices in the region.She will report to Jennifer Erickson, Mastercard’s global head of communications, based at the company’s headquarters in Purchase, New York.Hughes joined Mastercard in 2019 as director of communications for the UK and most recently served as vice president of communications for Europe. Earlier in her career, she spent seven years at HSBC and held agency roles at Instinctif Partners, FTI Consulting and Consolidated.Issokson began his career in political campaigns before moving into the agency sector, working at Edelman and Shift Communications. He joined Mastercard in 2006 as vice president of reputation management and public affairs communications and was appointed to lead communications for Europe in 2021.Reflecting on his retirement in a LinkedIn post, Issokson said his communications career had brought new challenges and opportunities, including managing media issues, adding that he had taken pride in serving as the company’s voice.