summary
(me, in a nutshell)
Transformative strategic communication and marketing leader known for surfacing game-changing insights and building high-performing narratives that move complex social impact and innovation markets forward. Results-driven strategist, executor and capacity builder. Strong multidisciplinary collaborator, trusted executive advisor, and proven relationship builder to critical influencers and stakeholders. Respected creative director and motivational team mentor with a history of fostering strengths-based, engaged creative teams known for setting the bar.
key strengths
(aka "superpowers")
Growth Advisor
Trusted executive advisor fostering intelligent growth via actionable insights, enhanced positioning and offer refinement.
Trusted Facilitator
Change manager and relationship builder known for forging trust and alignment to move complex, high stakes issues forward.
Strategic Storyteller
Multimedia storyteller translating complex ideas and insights into compelling, trust-building narratives.
Team Leader
Innovative creative team mentor passionate about building diverse, high-performing, and inclusive teams.
Stakeholder Champion
Inclusive live, virtual and interactive experiences strategically designed to educate, curate audience insights, foster community, and inform critical decisions.
Capacity Builder
Building brand-aligned systems that encourage cross-discipline collaboration, scale capacity, track critical DEI metrics and operationalize continuous improvement.
results of my labor
(the 10-year highlight reel)
Sr. Director of Marketing and Communications
Apr 2021-November 2023
INDUSTRY: Equitable College Access and Success
>> Transformed fragmented, underperforming brand to full team alignment on strengthened brand position, brand narrative, and audience activation experience.
>> Shaped executive communications in support of national advocacy, merger, change management and strategic growth initiatives.
>> Designed/led firm’s first integrated digital advertising, branded content and digital marketing campaign to build a continuous AmeriCorps recruitment/retention funnel amid burgeoning nat’l AmeriCorps recruitment challenges. Exceeded industry benchmarks for social ad campaign performance, and achieved 50% average email open rate; 168% growth in site traffic and 75% increase in applications for more +340 annual positions in first year.
>> Leveraged collaborative process to develop/launch firm’s first brand messaging playbook, effectively breaking down silos to build critical alignment and “one voice” consistency across all external-facing branded communications.
>> Developed firm’s first customer-centered national narrative and media relations strategy, leveraging executive thought leadership and influencer engagement activities to substantially grow brand awareness and engagement.
>> Designed/launched a nat’l strategic communications shared services line across our 8 regional sites, helping drive immediate, cost-effective results in regional brand awareness, reputation management, donor cultivation and student recruitment.
>> Designed Hubspot inbound demand generation, lead nurture and sales enablement pilot strategy to support Catalyze program fee-for-service revenue goals, with emphasis on strategic content marketing and influencer engagement.
>> Providing coaching, mentoring and team development to 5 full time marcom staff and 4 contractors/agencies; leading a national community of practice for 15 external affairs practitioners. Managing annual budget of + $900k.
PROJECTS:
Senior Strategic Communications Consultant
Apr 2019-Apr 2021
INDUSTRY: Public Water Supply Planning, Infrastructure, Treatment and Transport
>> Led highly collaborative, employee-informed and market-driven company rebrand and website redesign from strategy to launch, effectively articulating firm’s comparative strengths and setting stage for strategic business growth and DEI-aligned talent acquisition/retention.
>> Co-chaired company’s Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion (DEI) work group and co-led highly collaborative Strategic Plan development with approach that engaged the entire company.
>> Co-led the growth and best-practice development of the firm’s new Strategic Communications business line to prospective municipality clients throughout the west coast, supporting the acquisition of over $2M in new business revenue.
>> Successfully led org-wide transition to fully digital stakeholder engagement service design for clients during COVID pandemic, resulting in zero project delays and in some communities substantial growth in the diversity of stakeholder participants.
>> Provided state policy insight and designed/led inclusive public engagement experiences to inform community-aligned groundwater management plans, urban water management plans, and drought contingency plans for six diverse California communities.
>> Designed/led multi-year public affairs and information campaign to build stakeholder buy-in and community confidence in San Luis Obipso’s largest public works capital investment project in history.
>> Provided clear direction, creative collaboration and positive work environment for creative contractors in photography, videography, design and development. Managed client/project budgets of up to $500k each, coached creative project team of 5.
PROJECTS:
SLO Water Plus Groundbreaking Event
Director of Communications and Marketing
Jul 2017 - Apr 2019
INDUSTRY: Strategic Consulting
>> Transformed social impact firm’s national thought leadership and storytelling program to better align to prospective client needs, position firm’s unique strengths and elevate diverse team voices and points of view.
>> Led national media and thought leadership strategy, resulting in national op-ed article placement in Harvard Business Review, Business Insider, Chief Executive, Hubspot and Sustainable Brands and the production of 5 quarterly webinars.
>> Used collaborative process to transform approach to firm’s annual thought leadership publication, The Practice Papers, resulting in new relationships with over 100 Fortune 500 client prospects and expanding diversity of firm’s editorial voices by 400%.
>> Built firm’s first multi-channel B2B digital marketing strategy and campaign infrastructure using Salesforce. Led all social media, digital marketing, earned media, and live event marketing channels, resulting in 300% growth in website traffic, 35% growth in social following, 200% growth in earned media placement and 600% growth in leads generated in the first year.
>> Provided clear direction and collaborative work environment for creative contractors in photography, videography, design and web development. Managed $300k annual budget, supervised contractor creative team of 4.
PROJECTS:
Director of Marketing and Communications
Oct 2015-Apr 2017
INDUSTRY: Strategic Consulting; Sustainable, Equitable Urban Development
>> Led firm’s national thought leadership and public affairs strategy, serving as strategic advisor to CEO, preparing media responses, and proactive pitching to elevate the firm’s approach and impact.
>> Led comprehensive brand design update, brand architecture documentation and trademark implementation to support the org’s strategic growth across four business lines, a global certification product and a professional accreditation product.
>> Led multidisciplinary team to design and fulfill a multi-channel global product launch campaign for the world’s first neighborhood-scale urban development certification (think “LEED” but for neighborhoods), resulting in +1,500 new qualified leads from 35 countries + 6 continents in the first month. Led collaborative user experience and program design effort to downsize a $300k certification web build to a $50k effort, leading up to a global program launch.
>> Led the successful transition of an outsourced convening business line to a scalable in house fulfillment model, resulting in org’s first profitable nat’l conference in history and exceeding DEI and attendee satisfaction goals across 3 international events.
>> Successfully transformed org’s modest $100k communications budget to a more than $2M value and over 5 million viewer reach by securing 30 promotional partnerships and leveraging +100 industry influencers spanning 8 countries and 3 continents.
>> Collaboratively built org’s first multi-channel B2B digital marketing strategy and campaign infrastructure using Salesforce, and in support of ambitious program-, events- and membership revenue goals. Led all social media, email marketing, earned media, and live event marketing channels.
>> Co-developed DEI roadmap that established org-wide policies, goals and KPIs to fully operationalize our values across all aspects of the events business line, internal and external communications, and brand.
>> Provided coaching, professional development and clear direction to new marcom and events team members in fast-growth, fast-paced, ambiguous environment. Managed $700k annual budget, supervised creative team of 6 (including contractors).
PROJECTS:
Director of Marketing and Communications
Apr 2011 - Apr 2015
INDUSTRY: Climate, Energy, and Water; Corporate Social Responsibility
>> Led firm’s national thought leadership and public affairs strategy, serving as strategic advisor to executive team, preparing media responses, and proactive pitching to elevate the firm’s approach and impact.
>> Designed and managed multi-media, multi-year experiential audience engagement campaigns to drive carbon, energy, and water use related behavior change across diverse employee and customer audiences. Partners included Coca-Cola, National Hockey League, The North Face, Idaho Power, Clark Public Utilities, Southern Oregon State University, Portland Trailblazers, Major League Soccer and Mt. Hood Meadows.
>> Led creative and content direction for startup phase of the national Change the Course water flow restoration campaign, helping Secure 100k individual pledges to conserve water + confirmation that 80% of pledgers changed water use behavior within first year.
>> In collaboration with partners at NRDC and the Green Sports Alliance, wrote, designed, and launched the Solar Stadium Guide to support BEF's strategic growth in onsite and community solar service arm within the pro sports and stadium industry.
>> Led all aspects of creative and user experience design for org’s online footprint calculators and ecommerce system designed to cost-effectively support small business customer offset sales and renewals.
>> Provided clear direction, creative collaboration, and exceptional work environment for creative contractors in videography, public relations, and web development. Led $300k annual budget, supervised creative team of 4 (including contractors).
PROJECTS:
Founder, Director of Strategy and Creative
July 2004-present
INDUSTRY: Marketing and Strategic Communications Agency
>> Built boutique creative firm's national practice from the ground up, leading all aspects of business development and principal fulfillment of strategic branding, marketing strategy and strategic communication services.
>> Led national public affairs and media relations for international small press publisher client, PuddleDancer Press and key authors, including pitching earned media stories, interview prep and press kits.
>> Built trademark-pending brand strategy development process and trademark pending, scalable framework for building high-performing, market and audience-centered storytelling engines.
>> Developed and/or transformed more than 20 brands for small businesses and nonprofit organizations nationwide.
>> Recruited and built exceptional relationships with contractual partners in photography, videography, digital marketing, graphic design, web development, and copy editing.
PROJECTS: