Approaching the end of my career in communications, I’m majority owner of Mintz + Hoke Marketing Communications, the agency I first joined more than 40 years ago. In that time I started and built a public relations practice into one of the most award-winning in New England, earned professional accreditation, and was honored with a “lifetime achievement” award in my region by the Public Relations Society of America
Over the years, I’ve directed almost every area of the agency, from research, PR, media, digital and client service to human resources, accounting and finance. For many years I’ve served as an officer on the boards of non-profit organizations as well as one of the largest global networks of independent advertising agencies. Last year, I managed that network as interim executive director.
Having planned to teach college, I’d never considered going into the communications business. As it turns out, I couldn’t have been better prepared. The knowledge and critical skills I acquired at Geneseo have helped me succeed in every aspect of my work: from asking better questions and reading between the lines, to thinking strategically about our clients’ businesses and our own, to conceptualizing and presenting campaigns, to writing and producing, to hiring, coaching and managing people.
I’ve been fortunate to work with so many smart, creative people at Mintz + Hoke, many of whom I had the opportunity to recruit and hire, including a talented copywriter who became my husband, business partner and CEO of the agency. For most of his first interview, we talked about books. And, no surprise, he was an English major.