AdPR Week is on the horizon at Grady College! As we enter our fourth annual celebration, we are excited to announce guest speakers and a fun social media campaign, #AdPRide, to develop a sense of community and engagement among students and alumni in Advertising and Public Relations.
On Wednesday, September 19th, top brands in Georgia will discuss opportunities and challenges amidst a changing landscape of corporate communications. This discussion will be moderated by Brad Taylor, recently retired VP of Sales and Marketing, National Accounts at Coca-Cola and founder of Taylor Built Brands.
Pictured above, clockwise:
Amy Harry, Director Omni-Channel Customer Service Strategy, Delta: Atlanta native and graduate of UGA’s Grady School of Journalism, Amy started her 22-year marketing career on the ad agency side in NYC and later Atlanta before transitioning to client side at Delta in 2002.
Her experience includes digital marketing and social media as well as brand management and traditional advertising for Delta, DuPont, CIBA Vision, marchFIRST, Austin Kelley and Rapp Collins. The foundation of direct marketing principles combined with her interest in emerging technology led to pioneering a number of innovation initiatives in digital marketing and social media. In 2018 Amy transitioned from leading Delta’s Brand Communications and Social Media Marketing and Analytics to the Reservations & Customer Care division leading the Omni-Channel strategy to transform the way Delta serves customers across social, digital messaging and phone channels.
Jeff Baker, VP Marketing and Advertising, Buffalo Wild Wings: Jeff Baker is Vice President, Marketing and Advertising at Buffalo Wild Wings. Jeff oversees strategy and execution of Buffalo Wild Wings’ national advertising including creative development and content across broadcast, digital, mobile, social, and in-restaurant channels. Jeff previously led advertising for Arby’s, also within Inspire Brands. Jeff led the launch of the We Have The Meats campaign that helped lead to all time high sales and multiple awards, including a 2018 Gold Effie for Sustained Success.
Prior to joining Arby’s, Jeff was Vice President, Account Director at 22squared, leading advertising efforts for brands such as Baskin-Robbins, Jackson Hewitt Tax Service, Russell Athletic, Southeast Toyota, Buffalo Wild Wings, and Dunkin’ Donuts.
Leigh Woisard, Senior VP Corporate Public Affairs, Cox Communications: Leigh Woisard is Senior Vice President of Public Affairs for Cox Communications. She is responsible for directing the company’s internal communications, media relations, product public relations, crisis communications and corporate social responsibility initiatives. In her role, Leigh also serves as chief communications counsel to Cox’s senior executives.
Leigh has been part of the Cox team for 18 years, starting her career in New England as manager of media relations. She later led employee communications, media relations and charitable giving as director of public relations in New England and as vice president of public affairs for Cox Virginia. During this role, she was instrumental in shaping the communications strategy for Cox’s Northern Virginia, Roanoke and Hampton Roads region.
Prior to joining Cox, Leigh worked in the political arena as press secretary for the Lt. Governor of Rhode Island and as deputy chief of staff for a U.S. Congressman. As a public relations account executive, she has managed public relations campaigns for clients such as Chili’s Grille & Bar, The New England Journal of Medicine and a division of Stanley Tools.
She is an active board member and volunteer for many non-profits and professional organizations including Women in Cable Telecommunications. She is a recipient of the Public Relations Society’s Silver Anvil Award, the industry’s most prestigious national honor. She holds a bachelor’s degree in communications and public relations from the University of Rhode Island and a master’s degree in communications management from Syracuse University’s Newhouse School.
Heather Bell, Director KO:OP, Coca-cola North America’s In-house Creative Agency: Heather leads KO:OP, Coca-Cola North America’s in-house creative agency. In her six years at The Coca-Cola Company, Heather was also responsible for having developed the global Fanta strategy and campaign that was executed in over 200 countries.
Prior to working at The Coca-Cola Company, Heather held roles at BBDO with increasing responsibility on the AT&T business. She traveled between Atlanta and New York managing everything from 400 retail ads per week to fully integrated campaigns to ultimately playing a leading role in AT&T’s brand relaunch, Rethink Possible.
