"I am a maximizer, who succeeds by inspiring others to take the journey with me.
My team consistently exceeds expectations, making the impossible possible."
With over 20 years experience in branding, marketing, and communications, I feel fortunate to have spent my career in a field I love. One where I am excited to get out of bed and do something that most likely is just a little bit different than the day before. I thrive in an environment where I’m given a blank slate – an opportunity to flex my strategic and innovative muscles – to deeply understand the business, develop a strategic marketing plan and then launch a creative tactical plan to bring that work to light.
In short, I am infatuated with building brands.
2020-Current Senior Manager, Strategic Communications - Sustainability, John Deere
- Create a consistent and actionable narrative for John Deere around sustainability broadly defined to include a range of economic, environmental, social, and other outcomes important to our customers, employees (salaried and production), communities, investors, and brand fans
- Responsible for guiding internal and external campaign strategy, developing compelling messages and content, ensuring message discipline, managing internal creatives and outside agencies, and providing strong analytical results
- Serve as a business partner to relevant stakeholders across the enterprise to develop strategic communications initiatives across multiple teams including: Finance, Investor Relations, Labor Relations, Corporate Social Responsibility/Foundation, Global Brand & Communications, and Divisions
- Collaborate with key Global Brand and Communications team members, along with outside agencies to bring communications to life
- Elevate positive brand perception of company’s sustainability story
- Collaborate with global stakeholders
Maintain brand processes to ensure consistent high quality communications
2019-2020 Creative Strategic Enablement Manager, John Deere
- Lead a team of ten; oversee strategic planning and project management of "internal advertising agency"
- Oversee internal and external corporate communications projects, sponsorship activations, and brand campaigns
- Co-Lead the Visual Services team - responsible for scouting, shooting, post-editing, tagging, metadata & storing of all photography and video assets for the company through a mix of staff and freelance shooters
- Lead the team that activates corporate sponsorships including: FFA, FIRST, The First Tee, & the John Deere Classic
- Run the Global Marketing Communications Community of Practice; working closely with division marketing communications teams and interfacing on projects that span the enterprise
- Co-manage agency relationships for the Global Brand & Communications team, which comprises of ten different companies and a plethora of freelancers and other third party suppliers, ensuring the proper mix to accomplish book of work
- Responsible for overseeing the Visual Services global zero-based budget and roughly $4M activation budget
2017-2019 Senior Brand Manager, John Deere
- Oversee integrated marketing campaigns, emphasizing the next generations of brand fans and customers
- Activate corporate sponsorships: FFA, FIRST, The First Tee, and the John Deere Classic
- Lead the Global Marketing Communications Community of Practice; working closely with the division marketing communications teams
- Lead on Digital go-to-market charter
- Co-lead on Social Media charter; responsible for branding strategy and content creation
- Work with multiple agencies
- Lead a internal team of two
- Budgetary responsibilities
2015-2017 Public Relations & Enterprise Social Media Manager, John Deere
- Manage company's social media program of 200 internal stakeholders, two dozen agencies, 55 different countries, and 62 different social handles on: Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, YouTube, LinkedIn, and Weibo
- Rolled out Social Media 2.0 revamp to update and modernize infrastructure, processes, and overall program
- Developed and implemented a global shared services model within hub and spoke decentralized model
- Formed a cross functional, cross divisional council structure of senior leaders to assist with implementation of program's strategic direction
- Created and implemented a social customer care model
- Responsible for corporate content generation, social training program, implementing and enforcing policies/governance, channel reporting and insights, advertising, public relations, and issues/crisis management
- Serve as expert, liaison and oversee training of all stakeholders on Spredfast Conversations social media management tool
- Utilize Infegy as enterprise social media listening tool
- Regularly collaborate with compliance, legal, safety, brand, CSR, digital, market research, dealer channel, global regions, customer care, and divisions
- Budgetary responsibilities
2011-2015 Forestry Advertising Manager, PR & Social Media Manager, Construction & Forestry, John Deere
- Developed and rolled out all marketing communications efforts for company's largest two full tree North American product launches
- Nurtured and promoted the John Deere Forestry brand globally
- Directed and managed the development and distribution of integrated campaigns, content marketing, advertising, product photography, brochures, social media, direct marketing, and public relations efforts
- Managed over a half dozen agencies
- Served as editor in chief for the quarterly forestry dealer magazine
- Analyzed dealer and customer needs including competitive marketing intelligence
- Budgetary responsibilities
2008-2011 National Resource Center Manager and Ad & PR Manager, The HON Company
- Responsible for the company's $4M annaul investment in the national resource centers located in LA, NYC, DC, Chicago, Atlanta and Muscatine, along with five showroom managers
- Managed the strategic direction of company's branding
- Oversaw architect and design firms, contractors, building management teams, and creative agencies
- Directed the company's involvement in the office furniture industry's largest trade show, NeoCon, including showroom management, product management, public relations efforts, advertising initiatives, and employee involvement
- Responsible for company's and channel partners advertising initiatives
- Managed comprehensive, company wide public relations program - highlights included partnership with Extreme Makeover Home Edition, and with actor Rainn Wilson, who starred as Dwight Schrute on NBC's The Office
2005-2008 Advertising & Public Relations Manager, The HON Company
- Responsible for the development and execution of the company's first ever $3.1M national advertising campaign
- Directed and oversaw research, creative development, media placement, and ROI metrics
- Developed and implemented co-op tandem advertising initiative for all channel partners
- Managed companywide public relations program for the brand, including key messaging development, executive media training, news releases, case studies, video embedded news releases, satellite media tours, bi-lined articles, and key sponsorship opportunities in consumer and trade publications
- Managed advertising agency, PR firm, e-business manager and interactive initiatives, along with advertising and PR specialist
2001-2005 Director of Marketing & Advertising, Anderson Erickson Dairy
- Responsible for development and implementation of company's $2.5M strategic marketing efforts including all creative for television, radio, outdoor, print, point-of-purchase materials, website development, and public relations in five state distribution area
- Directed and oversaw all creative development, media buys, packaging design, and served as primary contact for advertising agency
- Served as lead member of new product development task force; responsible for the introduction of over a dozen new products each fiscal year - responsibilities included overseeing all stages of product development process from market research to product launch
- Acted as primary spokesperson and liaison for all media relations
- Wrote and administered company's crisis management procedures
- Developed and implemented internal public relations recognition program for 600+ employees
- Managed in-house product sampling team, and marketing assistant
- Oversaw all special events
- Developed and designed all internal sales materials and marketing tools
- Oversaw all in-kind donation requests and served on the committee to review all financial donations
Education
University of Iowa - pre MBA program
Drake University - BA Journalism & Mass Communication
Major: Public Relations
Minor: Psychology/Sociology
BMW3379@outlook.com
515-240-8272