Resume — My Portfolio

Manage and execute public relations strategies and tasks for cybersecurity company Trellix (formerly FireEye/McAfee), the biggest account at the agency.
▪ Primary duties include: handling regular communications as one of the primary day-to-day contacts for the account, creating and developing byline articles, maintaining relationships with media contacts, crafting media pitches and other content, overseeing metrics reporting, guiding and mentoring junior staff, analyzing media coverage, and broader planning, strategy, and brainstorming discussions.

Managed and executed public relations strategies and tasks for clients. Majority of my time spent on Microsoft's Cybersecurity account, but also other tech clients such as Intel and other cross-departmental initiatives outlined below.
Primary duties included: writing and distributing press releases, drafting and implementing bylined articles, blog posts, and other B2B content, metrics reporting, analyzing media coverage, and broader strategy and brainstorming discussions.
Served on the Media Strategy team working on broad media landscape analysis, best practices with media relations, educating junior staff, and creating news summaries for client and internal consumption.
Also worked on the Business Development team pitching prospective accounts for the agency using my experience in media relations, news literacy, and cybersecurity. Worked on the Discord pitch, which the agency eventually landed.

Drafted blog posts, byline articles, press releases and responses from high-level company spokespeople to increase Optiv’s brand and position as an industry thought-leader.
Worked with reporters to schedule interviews, prepared subject matter experts for interviews, tracked and managed pending media opportunities, as well as supporting other media efforts.
Tracked deadlines for awards and speaking engagements, reminded internal team members when needed, alerted executive team of published media stories, coordinated with other teams on internal company news alerts.
Managed speaking engagements, award submissions, and other efforts to boost Optiv’s name recognition.

Served as breaking news and higher education reporter for daily newspaper in Southwest Florida. Tasked with pitching, reporting, researching, writing, fact-checking and editing, original news and feature stories.
Regularly wrote multiple (between 3-5) self-edited and fully researched news articles per day, along with news briefs. Took photographs when necessary and posted constantly on social media throughout the day.
Worked under extremely tight deadlines that required solid sense of urgency, as well as a focus on quickly turning around clean, accurate text.
Interviewed individuals from all walks of life, from politicians, to law enforcement officers, to heads of business, to average citizens. Comfortable communicating in-person, via phone and email, as well as maintaining source/reporter relationships.
Expertise in AP style, grammar, adopting voice and tone, text flow, researching, and synthesizing complex concepts for a wide audience.

Developed a variety of journalism skills, including: producing news articles, becoming well-versed in AP style, conducting interviews, and researching and writing about many disparate topics. Easy-to-read content was a must, but with a keen eye for detail and thoroughness.
As night shift reporter, worked under many different editor/managers and circumstances. Often took over stories from day shift reporters, so collaborative work was a must.
Regularly dealt with sensitive subject matter, synthesized legal documents, and became familiar with ongoing municipal issues.

Activities and societies: Served as arts and features editor of The Gatepost student newspaper. Staff member of the newspaper for 3 years.