Tag: Member Stories

Crystal Zhao, one of WWPR’s newest members, is the director of special projects at Washington Media Group. She brings a unique mix of new media and political media experience to her clients—get to know her in this month’s Member Spotlight!

Her Background

Crystal considers her main specialities to be social media and podcast production, but she advises her firm’s clients on an array of communications tactics in a variety of fields and industries. She also hosts Washington Media Group’s podcast, Flack Pack, billed as the official public relations podcast of Washington, D.C.!

Prior to the Washington Media Group, Crystal worked for the Cato Institute where she designed and implemented the think tank’s first communications strategy for a $2 million multimedia start-up project. Her first job in D.C. was working for Congressman Bill Flores (R-TX).

Her Passion for PR

She loves communicating an effective message to the public—especially since amazing goals, initiatives, and ideas can get lost without a clear message. And she loves talking to people! As an extrovert, she loves communicating with the world—be it in-person or via social media.

Crystal especially likes her work at the small boutique firm because of the fast pace and lack of bureaucracy (which I’m sure she experience a lot of when she was working on the Hill), and she also appreciates the closeness between her and her co-workers.

Her Out-of-Office Time

Crystal is very into the fitness scene in D.C. and is even a former [solidcore] coach! She still attends many fitness classes at the boutique studios throughout the city and many of her closest friends are involved in the fitness industry. She also finds herself traveling often—she even owns three passports!

Her Mornings

In the morning, Crystal generally tries to get a workout in before heading to work. To make this happen, she wakes up about 30-45 minutes before the class, has her morning coffee, heads to class, then comes home to shower. True to form, she puts on several daily podcasts at 2x speed–though she warns it took her awhile to work up to that speed!–while she’s getting ready for work. It’s her way of staying tuned into the world.

For our June Member Spotlight, we’re pleased to introduce Stacy Fitzgerald-Redd, our new Membership Committee Co-Chair. In a Q&A session earlier this month, Stacy shared a few of her passions for PR, how she spends her weekends, and what she’s got planned for her WWPR committee.  

Psst… she’s also looking for a Co-Chair to help her with some innovative new membership efforts! Interested? Submit your application here.

Her Career and Passion for PR

Stacy has over 25 years of experience among communications, marketing and public relations in a variety of industries, including grocery retail, transportation (customer relations at Amtrak, no less!), production agriculture and building products. In her current position as the director of marketing and communications with the North American Insulation Manufacturers Association, she’s thrilled to be communicating for an industry that helps benefit the planet and global sustainability.

Her favorite aspect of PR is being able to educate and inform new audiences about innovations and evolutions. She’s particularly interested in telling her industry’s story and turning non-users into advocates. That’s how she knows when she’s made a difference.

Her Role as WWPR Membership Committee Co-Chair

As the newest member of WWPR’s Board of Directors, Stacy’s goal is to increase WWPR’s membership by the end of her first year. She’ll bring her skills as an avid networker who is comfortable speaking to anyone and everyone – from entry level to C-suite – and use storytelling to attract new members.

Her Out-of-Office Time

Stacy is a self-proclaimed oenophile, so one of her favorite activities over the weekends is to explore the many nearby Northern Virginia wineries. She also loves jazz and food – especially combining the two with local music events like Capital Jazz Fest and the BBQ Battle – as well as reading, writing, and traveling. One of her favorite places to visit is Kentucky’s horse country, Lexington.   

She has also recently signed up to be a political party volunteer and is the mother of two pre-teen boys, which keeps her pretty busy..

Her Mornings

As I’m sure is the case with many of us, Stacy considers herself to be slightly addicted to politics and social media. The start of her morning is devoted to reading the news, then sharing a few thoughts via Facebook or Twitter. And, as we all know, there’s a lot to react to in this political climate.

Her Advice for WWPR Members

Take advantage of the events! As she puts it, being around a wide range of professionals through WWPR exposes her to a number of diverse perspectives in a range of industries. Additionally, Stacy believes WWPR is a great way to reinvigorate your career and learn how to successfully shake things up to deliver the best possible messages to your audience.

She never assumes that because she’s been in PR for decades that she can’t learn more. As she puts it, that’s worth the cost of membership.   

Interested in joining Stacy as the Co-Chair of the Membership Committee and on the WWPR Board of Directors? Let us know!

Ariana Solis Gomez, director of strategic communications at Hogan Lovells, may be new to WWPR, but she’s already making her mark by focusing on our organization’s diversity and inclusion efforts. I chatted with her for this month’s Member Spotlight to learn more about her soon-to-launch blog series for WWPR and her commitment to advocating for women of color and other minority groups.

The Journey to DC

Ariana was born and raised in Mexico before moving to DC over six and a half years ago. Her life in the District began after she landed a scholarship from the Washington Center, where she took on an internship at the Hispanic Association on Corporate Responsibility (HACR) while taking a course on public policy and project management. Ariana turned the internship into a full-time position and built the communications department from the ground up—with an emphasis on the digital strategy—eventually becoming the director of communications.

Currently, she is part of Hogan Lovells’ Strategic Communications Practice Group, a new branch that is part in-house PR, part  public affairs and government relations. In this capacity, Ariana develops strategic issue advocacy campaigns to help move the legislative needle, increase brand visibility, and cultivate relationships with potential key audiences. 

Advocacy for Diversity & Inclusion

In and out of the office, Ariana is a tireless advocate for diversity and inclusion. She first found her passion for diversity and inclusion when she moved to the U.S. and found herself faced with new challenges related to diversity. At HACR, she was introduced to the organization’s mission to increase representation of Hispanics in corporate America, and she also worked closely with other organizations hoping to do the same with other minority groups.

Ariana still thinks there’s a long way to go to see more progress on that front, especially in leadership positions. One thing she always tries to do is bring awareness to the issues—including unconscious bias—and providing action items on best practices that individuals can take back to their communities or places of work, which she hopes will lead to substantial growth.

Diversity & Inclusion and WWPR

As part of her role on WWPR’s Content Committee, Ariana will be launching a new blog series focused on diversity and inclusion, including highlighting women of color who are making strides in the field. When she was considering joining the organization, she noted a lack of resources tailored to minority or other affinity groups, and flagged that as an opportunity for WWPR. Among other ideas for the series, she is hoping to take a look at what other women of color are doing in terms of diversity and inclusion, address unconscious bias, and share challenges that many face in the field.  

In addition to her efforts on the Content Committee, Ariana is also a member of the Emerging Leaders Awards Committee where she’ll be a liaison for the finalists—helping them navigate the process and becoming the point of contact for questions.

Her Ideal Weekend

Ariana’s favorite way to spend time out of work? Soul Cycle! She is a huge fan and describes the time in the studio as her treat. She also decompresses outside of work by watching movies, getting in quality time with her husband, and having dinner with friends.  

In the Morning…

Ariana recently updated her morning routine as part of her renewed focus on her health. She now begins her day at 5:45 a.m. with a high-intensity interval training workout. Since she’s not naturally a morning person, it’s a bit new for her, but she says having a routine has helped and now she’ll even feel a bit guilty if she skips a day. After the workout, she’ll get ready with a cup of coffee. Then, it’s off to work to check that inbox (and get more coffee!).

Her Advice:

Take more risks! Life happens outside your comfort zone.

Stop second guessing yourself – you are fully capable.

Check out Ariana’s latest blog post about how diversity leads to success in the workplace.