Hey, I'm Mike!
I'm a PR and Communications leader passionate about crafting innovative strategies and building impactful brand stories.
About Me
I’m driven to constantly improve and bring new ideas to the table. With a background in public relations that’s taken me from tech startups to big corporations, and from managing teams at an agency to being a versatile jack of all trades, I’ve developed a unique set of skills and perspectives over the course of my career.
Whether it’s coordinating meetings with Congress, working in a textile factory, or even aboard a Caribbean cruise ship, I've tackled opportunities and navigated situations that most in the PR field have never encountered.
Currently, I reside in Columbus, Ohio, with my wife, Lauren, and our son, Mason. I work remotely as the Global PR & Communications Lead for Certinia, a Salesforce-native platform for services businesses that helps them gain real-time customer and operational insights, optimize resource utilization, and grow profits.
Earned Media Coverage
Innovations at the Backbone of the Web
Infinera CEO Tom Fallon discusses internet connectivity and net neutrality.
Social Media's 'Olympic' Role
Procera Networks CEO James Brear shares data around social networking traffic and video streaming levels during the Olympics.
Computer Glitches Grounding Flights
Rocana CTO Eric Sammer joins KTVU FOX Bay Area to discuss the latest wave of computer glitches grounding flights across the US.
Modern Airline Apps Put Pressure on Aging IT Infrastructure
Rocana CEO Omer Trajman explains the biggest risk to airlines that will result in a consumer backlash, undoing all the gains of their front office investments.
How to Turn Data Into Stories
When Yakult, a Japan-based maker of probiotic dairy drinks, put TIBCO's data analysis tool into the hands of its sales force, they swapped out stale spreadsheets for stories about how the product was performing in real time.
Rocana Could Eliminate the Blame Game from Microservices Troubleshooting
TheNewStack's Kiran Oliver reviews the Rocana Ops platform in detail.
Customer Success Videos
Mercedes-AMG Petronas Formula One Team
Julian Herzog, performance and simulation engineer, explains how the team uses data and data analytics to save time in coming to an understanding of the best car setup, race strategy, and what makes a car fast.
Tipping Point Community
Ashley Brown, Manager of Impact & Learning, and Jamie Austin, Director of Impact & Learning, explain how TIBCO Spotfire Data Science is helping apply big data to the fight against poverty.
Customer Success Case Studies
TIBCO Case Study: Aeroporti di Roma
This case study explains how Aeroporti di Roma successfully connected the complete traveler experience across the airport ecosystem, and shifted from reactive to proactive operations.
Spotfire Case Study: Hemlock Semiconductor
This case study explains how Hemlock Semiconductor achieved centralized, self-service, governed analysis; revenue gains; cost savings; and more after deploying Spotfire software.
Personal Writing Samples
Charting the Course for Communications In an AI-Driven Era
Many feel pessimistic about how comms may look in 15 years. After hearing a futurist’s thoughts, I share with the Spin Sucks community reasons to feel optimistic about AI.
The Quick and Dirty Public Relations Guide to Wikipedia
This helpful guide explains how PR practitioners can satisfy clients' needs while still respecting Wikipedia’s rules of engagement.
Professional Resume
Work Experience
2023 - Present
Certinia | Global PR & Communications Lead
Devised and executed PR strategies, elevating Certinia's brand awareness, reputation, and expanding press relations and emphasizing integrated communications strategy (PESO).
Played a pivotal role in the successful rebranding of FinancialForce to Certinia in May 2023, surpassing social media targets, orchestrating multiple live events, and enhancing organic press coverage and executive profiles.
In under a year, amplified social media impressions by 89%, engagements by 117%, and boosted organic social referrals to the website by 10%.
2017 - 2023
TIBCO Software, Inc. | Senior Manager - Marketing Communications
Helped develop a global customer reference program with more than 230 customer references managed across the portfolio, resulting in:
over $90M in closed-won opportunities influenced in 2021
a 261% increase in press mentions from 2020-2022
a 50% YoY increase in the production of customer storytelling assets
2016 - 2017
Rocana (acquired by Splunk) | Public Relations Manager
Led trade, vertical, and business media relations, achieving coverage in premier outlets like Fox and WSJ, while coordinating comprehensive PR efforts and multiple external entities, ensuring timely, budget-aligned outcomes.
2011 - 2016
Engage PR | Public Relations Manager
Managed a portfolio of up to five business technology and telecom clients at a time, ranging from startups to publicly-traded enterprises.
Education
2004-2008, 2017
Ohio University | BS, Journalism
In Progress; Expected Completion Date 2024
Syracuse University | Certificate, PESO Model
In Progress; Expected Completion Date 2025
Columbus State Community College | Certificate, Digital Video Production
Certifications and Awards
Certified Customer Advocacy Professional (CCAP 1)
Certified in the Sprout Social platform
PR Daily 2023 Content Marketing Award winner
Q2-2023 Certinia Marketing Hero
Q3-2021 TIBCO Marketing Team MVP
Past PR Clients
TIBCO Software, Infinera, Procera, Rocana, Opera Software, Dimension Data, OpSource, Vantage Data Centers, ReTXT, Telecom Council of Silicon Valley, Sustainable Silicon Valley