PR Council Elects 2020 Officers and New Board Members

The PR Council (PRC), the U.S. trade association for public relations firms, announced today the election of new officers and Directors, all CEOs/Principals of their firms.

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PR Council Board Chair: Jim Joseph, Global President of BCW (New York) (Photo: Business Wire)

In the Chair role, Jim Joseph will lead the efforts of the Board and the PRC staff to help Member agencies and the industry overall grow talent, revenue, profits and reputation. Succeeding Gail Heimann, CEO of Weber Shandwick, he will serve a two-year term.

“The biggest challenge in our industry in the last decade has been talent,“ Joseph said. “During my term, I will focus our efforts on solving critical talent questions: How do we attract the most inquisitive, innovative and inspiring people to the agency business? How do we constantly upskill their capabilities to keep pace with the changing opportunities we have? And how do we retain them at our agencies and help them and us grow?”

Also serving a two-year term, Mike Santoro takes responsibility for overseeing the finances of the not-for-profit association, including the annual budget, audit and investment accounts.

Both Santoro and Joseph will be members of the Executive Committee, joining PRC Secretary Lee Caraher, CEO of Double-Forte, and PRC President Kim Sample.

PRC Board Members represent diverse regions of the country, areas of expertise and agency sizes, and serve three-year terms. Carter, Jackson Warner and Kempner join thirteen Directors continuing their terms: Julie Batliner (President, Carmichael Lynch Relate, Minneapolis), Peter Finn (Founding Partner, Finn Partners, New York), Cheryl Gale (President, March Communications, Boston), David Jarrard (CEO, Jarrard Philips Cate & Hancock, Nashville), Heather Kernahan (CEO, North America and Australia, Hotwire Global, San Francisco), Evan Kraus (President and COO, APCO Worldwide, Washington, D.C.), Tom Lindell (Managing Director, Exponent PR, Minneapolis), Neil Mortine (CEO, Fahlgren Mortine, Columbus), Phil Nardone (CEO, PAN Communications, Boston), and Barby Siegel (CEO, Zeno Group, New York). Caraher, Joseph and Santoro also serve as Board Members.

“We are excited to continue our momentum with this diverse and impressive group of leaders,” said Kim Sample, President, PR Council. “Our Board of Directors is instrumental in helping enrich and modernize our programming and we look forward to delivering even greater value to Members in the coming year.”

Established in 1998, the PR Council (PRC) is composed of America’s premier global, midsize, regional and specialty agencies across every discipline and practice. It is the leading trade association for agencies, designed to empower the present and next generation of communications professionals, industry innovators and business leaders through education, events and industry resources. The PRC’s active members from over 110 leading U.S. agencies represent more than 80% (est.) of all U.S. PR firm revenues and employ over 12,000 professionals.

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