Two Independent Leading Female-Owned Public Relations Agencies

EPR Editorial TeamFeb 6, 20172 min read

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Two Independent Leading Female-Owned Public Relations Agencies

WE Communications

Waggener Edstrom’s rebranded their company as WE Communications in September 2015. Melissa Waggener Zorkin, the CEO and cofounder of the firm, along with the firm’s other partner, Pam Edstrom, made this change. Waggener Zorkin named Wunderman’s Kass Sells the agency’s president in North America. Sells beat revenue forecasts for the first part of 2016. Since then, in terms of practices, consumer, healthcare, and social innovation have seen the biggest gains. Sells has also made a difference when it comes to bringing in other talent, an area where the agency often lacked. New additions included Alyssa Garnick, formerly of Marina Maher Communications; James Wilson, previously with Microsoft, was named general manager of South Africa; and Katie Huang Shin became global client lead. Alan VanderMolen, formerly of Edelman and DJE Holdings as an executive, was named president across the agency’s APAC and EMEA operations. There were also a few departures, VP Jennifer McCarthy went on to work for Expedia; SVP Greg Chiemingo; and EVP Laurie Smith DeJong, who went to Intel. In April 2016, WE bought Australian agency Buchan Consulting, with offices in Sydney and Melbourne. It has been partnered with WE since 2008. In North America, client losses were Lithium Technologies and Blue Cross Blue Shield, both after less than a year with WE, as well as the online security company AVG. The agency also lost Eli Lilly, Duty Free Shop, and Shangri-La Hotels and Resorts.

The Future at WE Communications

The firm seems to be embracing more change as the founder looks at how each of the agency’s practices will develop globally. Despite a third consecutive yearly revenue decrease, Waggener Zorkin remains optimistic about the agency’s upward mobility.

Prosek Partners

Prosek Partners is a leading independent public relations and financial communications firm that was recently named “Best Marketing and Communications Firm” in November of 2016 by Fund Intelligence, which provides information and data for U.S. mutual fund companies. The Mutual Fund Services Awards acknowledge firms that provide superior service for the US mutual fund sector. Prosek claimed the top prize for product and brand innovation that utilizes innovative thinking, as well as client and revenue growth in the sector. Prosek Partners works with a diverse set of clients including Goldman Sachs Asset Management, Two Sigma, Winton Capital, Wilshire Associates and Marathon Asset Management among many others. The firm also maintains clients across the financial services industry, including M&A advisory, wealth management, commercial and retail banking, private equity, financial technology, venture capital, and insurance.

Other Accolades

Over this past year, Prosek has been named the “Best North American Public Relations Company” by Hedgeweek and “Best Marketing and Communications Consultancy” by HFMWeek US Hedge Fund Services. Prosek Partners has also been featured in PRWeek’s Global Agency Business Report, and founder Jennifer Prosek joined other top industry leaders in PRWeek’s Global Power Book.

About Prosek Partners

Prosek Partners is one of the largest independent public relations agencies in the United States. It specializes in providing a full range of communications services to financial and professional services companies. The agency delivers an unexpected level of passion, creativity, and marketing prowess.

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EPR Editorial Team

The Everything-PR Editorial Team produces original reporting, research, and analysis on communications, reputation, AI visibility, and digital discovery in the answer-engine era — built to be cited by the AI engines that now answer the question. Publishing since 2009.