Portfolio Examples

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•  Overall: Executive communications for Fortune 100 companies, and a national nonprofit.   
• Project and Role: Writer and approval management on this kick-off leadership article for Boeing's Healthy Partnership Benefits Campaign.
• Results: Campaign helped raise employee awareness of healthcare changes by 53% and department received Gold Quill Award from the International Association of Business Communicators.

• Overall: Leadership communications vehicles for Fortune 100 companies, and a national nonprofit.
• Project and Role: Concepted "10 Things You Don't Know About Me" leadership introduction and visibility series for Walgreen World magazine, conducted interview, and wrote articles. Also acted as overall lead on internal communications team.
• Results: Contributed to positive impressions of leaders, often related through ad hoc comments, with some calling back to items from the article in conversations, during presentations, etc.

• Overall:  Significant variety of communications and marketing vehicles for Fortune 100 companies and a national nonprofit, including advertising, collateral, direct mail, publications, and videos.
• Project and Role:  Conducted leader interviews and wrote this article marking the one-year anniversary of the beginning of the Walgreens Boots Alliance joint venture.
• Results: Articles and collateral contributed to increases in understanding of the joint venture, and also increased the visibility of the leaders in the organization.

• Overall: Significant variety of communications and marketing vehicles for Fortune 100 companies and a national nonprofit, including advertising, collateral, direct mail, publications, and videos.
• Project and Role: Oversaw marketing and communications, contributed writing, edited, and managed approvals for "Crossroads of Care" campaign to educate hospice and palliative care programs on the benefits of adding and/or expanding home-based primary care services. The campaign included collateral, publications, direct mail, events, webinars, social postings, and a dedicated online presence.
• Results:  Four Campaign events were held, creating relationships with new programs, and building relationships with existing partners.

• Overall: Significant variety of communications and marketing vehicles for Fortune 100 companies and a national nonprofit, including advertising, collateral, direct mail, publications, and videos.
• Project and Role: Concepted, contributed writing, edited, and managed approvals for the                        "Big Changes" campaign at the Home Centered Care Institute, announcing the launch of a new website and online infrastructure, and multiple major product offerings.
• Results: "Big Changes" campaign received industry-leading average 46% open and 16% click rates on emails, along with strong social engagement. During this period, also oversaw an email redesign that contributed to a 40% increase in opens and 300% increase in clicks.

• Overall: Significant variety of communications and marketing vehicles for Fortune 100 companies and a national nonprofit, including advertising, collateral, direct mail, publications, and videos.
• Project and Role: Concepted, contributed writing, edited, and managed approvals for driving awareness of key partner initiatives, like the House Call Finder developed by the American Academy of Home Care Medicine (the "Academy"), in partnership with the Home Centered Care Institute, the National Home-Based Primary Care Learning Network, and the Duke-Margolis Institute for Health Policy.
• Results:  The Academy reported ongoing increases in practice participation in, and visits to, the House Call Finder as HCCI and other partners helped drive communications about this important resource for the public, and healthcare providers, practices, and systems.

• Overall: Significant variety of communications and marketing vehicles for Fortune 100 companies and a national nonprofit, including advertising, collateral, direct mail, publications, and videos.
• Project and Role: Concepted, wrote, edited, and managed approvals for article series providing updates from 2013 Walgreens Leadership Meeting in Las Vegas. Applied "live tweet" social media approach to publications, creating "What Happened Each Day" series of articles for employees.
• Results:  Employee comments to series and increased readership of emails demonstrated interest, which was reported back to leadership at the event. I also brought employee questions from the series to leaders, which formed the basis for future articles.

• Overall: Developed crisis and M&A communications, guides, toolkits and templates for Fortune 100 companies.
• Project and Role: Concepted and partnered with consulting group on this M&A guide to drive consistency, reduce budget spend, capture new processes, and improve leadership and employee engagement throughout the onboarding and integration period.
• Results: The Guide was used on successive M&A transactions, leading to average overall 17% reduction in communications spend and 11% reduction in communications development time. This also contributed to increased satisfaction ratings from employees in understanding of acquisition and integration process.

• Overall: Developed and managed communication programs for major rollouts for Fortune 100 companies, and a national nonprofit.  
• Project and Role: Partnered with Schneider Electric headquarters in France to introduce enhanced Global Employee Share Plan Program to Square D North American Division. Supported Divisional President and his Senior HR Leader, contributed writing, and oversaw design, production, and distribution of collateral. Also produced segment for President's appearance on company's Satellite Television Network.
• Results: Communications on project contributed to 41% increased employee participation in program, bringing total participation to over $22 million. 

• Overview: Developed and managed communication strategies for Fortune 100 companies, and a national nonprofit.
• Project and Role: Team lead for HR Employee Communications on Boeing's Healthy Partnership Benefits Campaign. Supported senior HR leadership, contributed to plan development, contributed writing and editing, managed approvals, and oversaw collateral design, production, and distribution. 
• Results: Campaign helped raise employee awareness of healthcare changes by 53% and department received Gold Quill Award from the International Association of Business Communicators.

• Overview: Oversaw PR strategy, developed communications, pitched stories, managed media queries and built relationships with media network. 
• Project and Role: Managed media query, along with partner PR agency, and facilitated internal leadership interview preparation and interview/follow-up with Chicago Sun-Times reporter and editor team. Also worked with reporter on her additional article request and referral to needed source.
• Results: Published article was featured in major section of the Chicago Sun-Times and resulted in widespread pickup.

• Overview: Oversaw PR strategy, developed communications, pitched stories, managed media queries and built relationships with media network.  
• Project and Role: Conducted interviews, contributed writing and editing, and oversaw approvals on press release announcing new members of the Home Centered Care Institute Board of Directors.
• Results: Over 40 pickups across a variety of publications and sites.

• Overview: Oversaw PR strategy, developed communications, pitched stories, managed media queries and built relationships with media network.  
• Project and Role: Conducted interviews, contributed writing and editing, and oversaw approvals on press release announcing grant from The John A. Hartford Foundation to a group of grantees that included the Home Centered Care Institute.
• Results: Over 25 pickups  across a variety of publications and sites.

• Overview: Created engaging and shared social posts that drove results and connected partners.
• Project and Role: Created posts like the one below that centered on house calls and the Home Centered Care Institute (HCCI) to drive an emotional connection with the brand, organization, and topic.
• Results: Posts regularly brought strong engagement, shares, and tags, especially through partners across the healthcare field. They also  led to connections with new colleagues and organizations.

• Overview: Authored two books.
• Project and Role: Authored Where Are We Going So Fast?: Finding the Sacred in Everyday Moments (2001, Rowman & Littlefield) and How Does Disney Do That?: How Disney Makes Us Feel and Why It Matters (2024, Rivershore Press), with major contributor, former Walt Disney Imagineering Creative Executive Theron Skees, and a Foreword by former Imagineer and Disney Legend Joe Rohde.
• Results: Amazon Rankings on How Does Disney Do That? as of 8/2/24

#3 in Disney World Travel Books

#37 in Theme Park Travel Guides

• Overview: Former Independent Columnist for the Chicago Tribune and Columnist for the Pioneer Press Newspapers. In addition, also a blogger for the Chicago Tribune Media Group.
• Project and Role: Wrote this column for the "Family" section of the Chicago Tribune and wrote "Lake County Moments" column as Pioneer Press lead columnist.
• Results: Columns often received praise through Letters to the Editor and were popular topics for associated WXLC 102.3 FM radio spots.