Congratulations to our CEO Scott Allison who was recognized with an ‘Outstanding Individual Achievement’ award at PRovoke Media's SABRE Awards! Read on to see the speech he delivered at the awards ceremony. 

One Sunday a few months ago, I taught two of the most important people in my life how to put on their shoes. My preschool-aged daughter was learning how to get dressed, just like her peers. But my mother had recently suffered a stroke. And after decades of self-sufficiency, she was now painstakingly re-learning not only how to dress herself, but also how to speak, read and follow simple instructions. That day signaled the start of a new chapter in my motherhood journey, one that I could never have anticipated and I was unsure I was equipped to handle it. As I curled up in bed that night, all I could think about was whether I’d succeed in navigating this new normal.

We realize Mother’s Day can be a difficult and complicated day for some, so please feel free to skip reading if this is a sensitive topic for you. Thank you. 

While Mother’s Day has evolved to be a day of celebration and appreciation by way of brunch, flowers, cards and (if you’re lucky) some downtime for moms, the origination of Mother’s Day in the U.S. stems back to social and political concerns that impacted women in the early 1900s. Now, there is a growing movement for Mother’s Day to go beyond the Hallmark Holiday, recognize the sacrifices mothers make for their children and celebrate the collective power of mothers supporting other mothers. I am very happy to see this shift, with deeper and more meaningful conversations being had year-round, and certainly around Mother’s Day, about how society can better support moms of all types.

Our health tech clients come to us for help attracting media attention — some seek publicity related to funding, others want to break into new markets and still others try to drive sales — but all have their eyes on earned, as they should.  

In today’s media environment, health companies face an increasingly uphill battle in the fight for attention and coverage. This dynamic is largely due to a renewed focus on health due to the COVID-19 pandemic, in addition to the overwhelming demand for new technologies and more integrated health business models (whether you are a health company or not).

Watching the figure skating events at the Winter Olympics always brings me back to my childhood days of crack-of-dawn training sessions, the joy at finally landing that Axel I worked so hard to perfect, and the nerves and excitement of competition. Growing up, I was the only kid in my school who figure skated. Yet throughout my career in PR, I’ve had the pleasure of working with at least a dozen former skaters, coaches and judges. So, what attracts a high number of figure skaters to the communications industry, and how do we apply the lessons we learned on the ice to our jobs?

In the age of news at our fingertips 24/7, COVID-19 has and will continue to dominate the news cycle and engagement on social media while fueling the ongoing “war on truth.” However, what has not disappeared is the value of foundational media relations as an important cornerstone of healthcare storytelling.

So, what’s on the horizon for 2022 and what tools from the toolbox will help us effectively tell those stories?