Comms Confidential: The Podcast

How does a comms team actually build the case for hiring someone dedicated to AI? Erin Miller has the answer. Erin Miller is VP of Global Corporate Communications at Yahoo, where she's spent the last two years helping reposition a 30-year-old brand for a new era. Her path runs from Porter Novelli and Condé Nast through Meta and Handshake to Yahoo, nearly two decades built on the same instinct: rel...

AI is shaping every aspect of the communications field. From content development to agents that can help with crisis plans, there's no avoiding it anymore. In this episode of Comms Confidential, Adam Pratt, the Director of Issues and Government Communications at IBM, and Tiffany Guarnaccia, the CEO and Founder of Kite Hill PR, discuss the difference between using AI and building systems, informati...

Susan Oguche spent 20 years climbing the comms ladder, from P&G to Nike to CCO of the Cleveland Cavaliers and now the founder of Brilliance Communications. In this episode she breaks down: •  The three-stage journey from doer to strategist to trusted advisor and why you can’t skip the rungs. •  Why adaptability is the one superpower that scales across every company culture. •  How her lean Cav...

What does it actually take to prove the value of internal communications? Regine Nelson and Keith Berman have the answer—and they don’t agree on everything. Regine Nelson went from travel PR in 2003 to PayPal and a string of in-house tech roles, taking a six-year break to raise three children before returning as sharp as she left. Keith Berman started as an FM rock radio DJ, became a journalist fo...

Brooke Kruger founded KC Partners in 2009 out of the financial crisis, built the business by treating candidate relationships the same way she ran media relations on the agency side, and has spent 16 years placing senior communications professionals at high-growth tech companies, VC firms, agencies, and corporations. This episode is a practitioner briefing on the current state of comms hiring: wha...

What does it take to build a crowd of thousands—not with a product or a pitch, but with pure joy? Vincent Chapman has the answer. From Little League fields in Northeast Texas to sold-out Savannah Bananas stadium tours watched by millions, Vincent built a career and a personal brand by treating joy as a deliberate, repeatable strategy rather than a mood. His viral 2015 video caught the Bananas' att...

What does it take to build PR for a brand that doesn't believe in red tape? Sam Bauman has the answer. From local TV news anchor in Michigan to media relations lead at one of the most creative sports entertainment brands in the world, Sam spent ten years reporting the news before the Savannah Bananas called him to help make it. He built their media relations function from the ground up — navigatin...

What does it take to build a B2B brand that journalists actually want to cover and does that change when the journalists no longer need a masthead? Aaron Berger, Principal and Co-Founder of A/M Partners, has the answer. From a Washington DC cab to Ketchum, Mastercard, IBM and now his own firm, Aaron has seen the industry evolve rapidly. In this episode, we discuss why prestige media validates rath...

Adrianna G. Bevilaqua started college as a pre-med student. She ended up as Chief Creative Officer of M Booth and the path in between tells you everything about how great creative instincts actually develop. In this episode of Comms Confidential, Adrianna unpacks the frameworks behind her creative process: her small data vs. big data approach, the Culture Mark tool M Booth built to map brand arche...

Ashley Jacobson shares her unconventional journey to PR, highlighting the transferable skills acquired from a background in theater and corporate sponsorship. She discusses the challenges of transitioning from theater to PR, overcoming imposter syndrome, and balancing creativity with reality. Additionally, she provides insights into working with celebrity talent and the transition to ad tech. The...

This conversation explores the recognition of the need for change and the decision to take a leap into something different. Sarah Kissko Hersh, founder of Type A Consultancy, discusses the internal whisper that signals the need for change and the courage to pursue a new path. Learn more about Type A Consultancy at https://www.typeaeveryday.com/ Connect with Sarah on LinkedIn at https://www.linkedi...

What does it really take to turn creative campaigns into lasting credibility? In this episode of Comms Confidential , host Joe Gallo sits down with Sofie Diskin , who leads trade PR at The Martin Agency , one of the most influential creative agencies in the world. Sofie shares what it’s like to run communications inside an ad agency—where PR, creativity, and business growth constantly collide—and...

Amanda Russo shares her journey from a terrorism analyst to the Director of Communications for the Crypto Council for Innovation (CCI). She discusses the challenges and opportunities in her transition, the role of CCI as a trade organization, and the communication strategy at CCI. Amanda also provides insights into preparing for congressional testimony, measurement and merchandising of work, and a...