By: Zac Moffatt, February 5, 2020
We launched Targeted Victory’s public affairs and corporate communications group three years ago to support our clients’ growing need for public relations, issues management and executive positioning.
Today, I am pleased to announce an important addition to our team. Ray Day is joining our team as Chair of Targeted Victory, bringing 30 years of experience leading global communications for two of America’s most iconic brands IBM and Ford Motor Company. Ray, who most recently served as Chief Communications Officer at IBM, shares our belief that today’s corporate communication landscape is changing, and firms need to take a new approach. That includes a focus on speed, mobile-first creative and bringing a different perspective than traditional firms. In his role at Targeted Victory, he will lead the expansion of our crisis practice and corporate affairs offerings.
Ray’s vision for the next generation of corporate communications and marketing aligns with the steps we are taking to build an innovative and nimble agency of the future. He understands the importance of authentic storytelling as well as our emphasis on digital and engaging content. He has seen how the media landscape has changed and understands how companies need to adapt to an always-on, dynamic environment. He knows that a hyper-local approach is one of the best ways to build brand affinity and tell a corporate story in a way that connects with the consumer.
Ray got his start in media as a Detroit-area newspaper reporter and went on to spend 28 years at Ford Motor Company where he led the vision, strategy and execution of their global communications efforts in his final 10 years with the company. As Chief Communications Officer at IBM, he led a global team of 500 communicators and helped transform the company’s focus on storytelling and data analytics to increase positive share of voice.
Our public affairs and corporate communications team is now over 35 people and includes former presidential administration officials, senior presidential and congressional strategists, a former executive producer of a national morning show and global public relations and marketing professionals. We know that getting a broad range of talent is important to our continued success and necessary to help our clients navigate today’s evolving media environment.
We are excited to have Ray join our team and to also serve in a leadership position at our parent firm, the Stagwell Group.
Full Stagwell release below:
Role to integrate and innovate across Stagwell’s offerings, creating the agencies of the future
WASHINGTON, Feb. 5, 2020 – The Stagwell Group (http://www.stagwellgroup.com) today named Ray Day as Vice Chair of its Marketing and Communications Agencies. The new leadership position will continue the integration, innovation and growth of the Stagwell Group companies, building the agencies of the future and enabling the future of communications and marketing.
Day, a recognized voice and leader in communications and public relations, joins Stagwell with more than three decades of experience and insights as a chief communications officer leading global communications teams, brands and agencies, including at Ford Motor Company and IBM. He is well-known for expertise in reputation building, content creation, data and analytics, crisis readiness and recovery, and communications team development.
“Communications and PR are changing at warp speed, and the successful companies, brands and leaders will be the ones that quickly shift their focus to the future of communications. This future will be defined by being digital, mobile, measurable and engaging – both in reaching stakeholders and in delivering compelling content,” Day said. “After 30 years of leading communications teams and agencies in-house, I have seen firsthand what’s required from the best agency partners, and I am excited to join Stagwell’s talented, nimble and innovative group of agencies as we create the future together.”
In the new role, Day will lead and integrate across all the Stagwell agencies to continue growing and providing clients, brands and communications teams with the best people, solutions and services. This includes building for a future with increasing market demand for an agency partner designed around flexibility, creativity, technology, data and speed.
The new role builds on the successful expansion of Stagwell’s central marketing team and several prominent new hires in the past year to foster further collaboration across its agencies. The objective is to provide end-to-end marketing and communications solutions and offerings that meet the full needs of clients undergoing digital transformation.
In addition to his cross-Stagwell role, Day will serve as chair of Targeted Victory, leading an expansion of its crisis practice and corporate affairs offerings. Targeted Victory, a growing member of the Stagwell Group, is a digital-first, full-service public affairs, strategy and marketing agency headquartered in the Washington, D.C. area.
“I have admired, known and worked with Ray in the communications and marketing industry for more than 20 years,” said Stagwell Group Managing Partner Mark Penn in announcing the appointment. “Ray and I share a common vision that the future of the communications and marketing industry is rapidly changing, and the market is seeking partners that can deliver services that best utilize data analytics, digital, mobile, advocacy and creative services in the most seamless and efficient way. Ray’s addition to the Stagwell Group and our companies will help us accelerate our growth and achieve that vision.”
The Stagwell family includes Code and Theory, ForwardPMX, Grason, Harris Insights & Analytics, HarrisX, Ink, Locaria, MMI Agency, Multiview, National Research Group, Observatory, Reputation Defender, Scout, SKDKnickerbocker, Stagwell Tech, Targeted Victory and Wye Communications.
About the Stagwell Group
The Stagwell Group is the first and only independent, digital-first and fully integrated organization of size and scale servicing global brands across the continuum of marketing services. The group includes more than 9,000 employees operating in more than 25 offices around the world. Collaborative by design, Stagwell is not weighed down by legacy points of view and its people are united in their desire to innovate, evolve, grow and deliver superior results for clients. Stagwell’s high growth brands include experts in four categories: digital transformation and marketing, research and insights, marketing communications, and content and media.
For more: www.stagwellgroup.com