PR Firm News: Messina Group Rebrands as Fortius Global
Wed, Oct. 14, 2026
By Steve Barnes
The Messina Group is rebranding as Fortius Global and opening an office in London. Jim Messina, who launched the firm in 2013 after serving as campaign manager for Obama for America, will serve as CEO of Fortius Global and continue to set the vision, strategy, and execution for Fortius and its companies... The New York Chapter of the National Investor Relations Institute names the new members of its NextGen Committee for the 2026-2027 term... Billion Dollar Boy, a social and influencer marketing agency with offices in New York and London, acquires Santa Monica, CA-headquartered Creator Authority.
The Hoffman Agency, a Silicon Valley-based firm with offices in Europe, Asia and the U.S., teams up with United Partners Network, a global community of independent communications agencies... ChangeMakers acquires R&G Strategic, a Halifax, Nova Scotia-based firm with a practice that spans ESG and sustainability strategy and reporting; stakeholder engagement; climate and GHG consulting; sustainability campaigns; branding; communications; and marketing... AltaVista Strategic Partners, a Baltimore-based firm, opens an second office in Tampa, effective Oct. 15.
On Tuesday, Sept. 29th, New York Women in Communications (NYWICI) honored four exceptional women at the third annual Trailblazer Awards, one of NYWICI’s signature programs established to recognize emerging professionals and leaders in communications, marketing, advertising, public relations, and media.
Bospar expands its Audit*E tool for small- and medium-sized businesses, which provides comprehensive visibility scoring, competitive analysis and platform-specific improvement recommendations, giving users actionable intelligence to help with brand positioning.... 5W is increasing its presence in Tampa and the Florida market....PR Consultants Group, a nationwide network of senior-level public relations, strategic communications and marketing specialists in more than 50 U.S. markets, has brought on 13 independently owned public relations firms across 13 markets and 12 states so far in 2026.
The Legal Marketing Association Southwest and West regions will explore the ways in which legal marketers can leverage technology, strategy and innovation to drive meaningful growth at the Tech West x Southwest (TWxSW) Conference. “Set the Pace: Leading the Profession Forward” will be held from Oct. 14-16 at the Sheraton Phoenix Downtown... Washington Women in Public Relations will present its 2026 Woman of the Year Award with the theme "The Trust Gap: Leadership, Influence, and Truth in a Fragmented World," which will be held at the Potomac Hotel, Autograph Collection (formerly the Salamander DC) on Oct. 23 from 11:00 a.m. to 1:00 p.m....KikiNetwork Communications is holding the AI in HigherEd MarComms Conference, Jan. 11–12, 2027, in New York City.
Sandbox Communications, a consultancy that works to help nonprofits strengthen donor relationships and expand their networks is launched by Allison Worldwide founding partner Scott Pansky... FINN Partners releases “The Next Frontier in Brain Health,” an eBook exploring how global advances in science can reach people through better care, communication and attention to brain health... Tunheim and its creative partner CCF have earned two Northern Lights Awards from the Minnesota Association of Government Communicators and received three Gold Awards from the Healthcare Advertising Awards for the “Easier Said Than Done” tobacco cessation campaign.
Established through a founding gift from 2025 Page Hall of Fame inductee and former Weber Shandwick Global CEO Andy Polansky, the fund is meant to serve as a catalyst for empowering future senior communications leaders as well as increasing the diversity in the chief communications officer pipeline.
Antenna Group is presenting “Antenna House 2026: The Value Transition,” an immersive Climate Week NYC experience... Statusphere, an AI marketing platform, is hosting Status Summit, which will focus on how AI is changing the way consumers discover, evaluate and ultimately choose brands and products... Antenna Up, a commercial, cultural and philanthropic infrastructure company that partners with brands and media to develop what it calls a “healthier men's media ecosystem in the US,” is sponsoring its second annual Marketing to Men Summit.
Penta brings on Dustin Johnson, former chief commercial and innovation officer at Weber Shandwick, as president, global intelligence. Conall McDevitt, who has been with Penta since 2013, will be taking on the title of president, global advisory... Business Roundtable names Kristen Silverberg as president and CEO, succeeding current CEO Joshua Bolten, who is stepping down on Jan. 31, 2027... Holland & Hart, a legal firm with firm with more than 500 lawyers in 14 offices, promotes Catherine Austin to chief marketing and business development officer.
Inez Kaiser, who was the first African American woman to run her own public relations firm serving national clients, will be honored as the inaugural recipient of the Page Catalyst Award at the 2026 Page Annual Conference, September 27–29 at the JW Marriott Atlanta Buckhead in Atlanta, Georgia.
Dezenhall Resources, a DC-based crisis management and public affairs firm names Jennifer Condon as SVP. Condon joins the firm from America250, the congressionally authorized organization overseeing the United States’ 250th-anniversary commemoration... Thunderly brings on Carlos Cortinas as chief strategy officer, a newly created position... Reputation Advisors International, a global network of senior communications professionals with members in 18 cities across 14 countries, brings on Thiago Vitale, CEO of Brazilian firm TORRE Comunicação e Estratégia, as its newest member. 
IPREX names Big Picture PR in San Francisco, Precision Strategies in Washington, D.C., and Tiny Mighty Communications in Nashville as its first Americas Partner Cohort... Highwire launches AcroAnswers, a proprietary AI visibility platform... Big Red Oak and Naer Communications, a Calgary-based firm, form a partnership providing integrated communications and marketing services to clean energy companies and organizations across Canada.
Page launches the Polansky Future Leaders Fund, which was established through a gift from 2025 Page Hall of Fame inductee and former Weber Shandwick Global CEO Andy Polansky... Ruder Finn reintroduces its website, ruderfinn.com, which will now feature a large language model (LLM) as its primary user interface... Higher Plane Media is launched by former Sloane & Company CEO Darren Brandt.
Washington Women in Public Relations plans two events focused on helping communicators negotiate the current work landscape. “Mapping Your PR Career: Agency, In-House, Independent and Beyond” and “Reorienting After a Job Loss: How to Begin”... New York Women in Communications will present 2026 Trailblazer Awards on Tuesday, Sept. 29 at Forbes on Fifth, 24 Fifth Avenue, in New York... The American Marketing Association is presenting an Aug. 25 webinar that will walk participants through the process of building a practical user experience (UX) workflow by mapping how customers move from first awareness to trust, action and follow-up.
CGLife, a pharma agency focused on clients who are bringing therapies for rare, specialty and hard-to-treat diseases to market, combines with AI-native agency The Considered+AI... PRSA-NY announces the shortlist for the 2026 Big Apple Awards... The Agency East Public Relations, a Fort Lauderdale–based shop that works exclusively with women business owners in the early growth stage, is expanding its practice to help women business owners get found and cited by AI answer engines like ChatGPT, Google AI Mode, Perplexity, and Claude.
Global Situation Room’s latest Reputation Risk Index says that the Iran War has overtaken artificial intelligence as the top reputational risk for companies... RKD Group, a fundraising and marketing services firm that works with mission-driven organizations, acquires creative agency Whiteboard... The Public Relations Collective launches.
