My corporate career included leading Corporate Communications for a bank, coordinating international high-tech product launches, and managing a newsroom for a CBS affiliate. For many years, I’ve earned my living as a freelance writer and have published hundreds of articles in magazines (consumer, trade and custom), newspapers, online and in companies’ internal communications. Here’s my path from journalism major, through corporate career, to freelance writer.
News Director – KVIQ Television (Eureka, CA) – After graduating with a journalism major, English minor, I managed a newsroom responsible for four live broadcasts a day. Each day, I wrote stories and edited reporters’ stories. I improved the newscasts to earn the number one position in Arbitron and Nielsen ratings. I reported on politics, business, earthquakes and timber issues – interviewing congressmen, governors, presidential candidates, movie stars, and a Nobel Prize winner.
Short gigs as an account executive for a public relations company with architecture and hospitality clients, as an independent video producer and director of a nonprofit which built and rehabbed houses for low-income families, then on to…
First Interstate Bank, Vice President & Manager Public Communications (PDX, OR) – I managed the communications department and interacted with news media in a five state region, including ghost writing articles for The Oregonian and financial publications, writing executive speeches and producing the annual report. Also, I developed the bank’s media training program and managed crisis communication.
Oregon Public Broadcasting, Director of Corporate Communications (PDX, OR) – With OPB at the forefront of digital television, much of my strategy and writing centered on this technology. I oversaw and wrote articles for the monthly member magazine Focus (which had the largest subscription of any magazine in the state). Also, I generated statewide publicity for shows such as Nature and Nova.
Tektronix, Inc., Worldwide Marcom Manager (Beaverton, OR) – I produced marketing materials for international high-tech product launches for oscilloscope, logic analyzer and Bluetooth products. I developed key messages, press releases, websites, sales literature such as brochures, application notes and print ads.
In my corporate career, I earned some Awards and Kudos.
Portfolio