 Mark Veverka |
Abernathy MacGregor has hired Mark Veverka as a senior VP. Most recently, Veverka was head of Sitrick and Co.’s San Francisco operations, leading financial, crisis and litigation communications programs for such companies as Toyota, TPG, Jawbone, Yelp, Khosla Ventures and Dolby Laboratories. Before that, he was west coast editor and technology columnist at Barron’s. He has been a financial columnist for the San Francisco Chronicle and held positions at the Wall Street Journal, Crain’s Chicago Business, the Orange County Register and other publications. Early in his career, Veverka was an on-air reporter for the NBC affiliate in Tulsa, OK.
 Greg Schumann |
Birmingham, AL-based Markstein has brought on Greg Schumann as vice president and Jessica Lumsden Black as director. Schumann most recently served as group president of Time, Inc. Sales & Marketing, where he led seven industry-focused advertising units. Prior to his corporate sales role, Schumann oversaw the Southern Living, Coastal Living and Sunset brands. Black previously was director of integrated marketing for Peach Bowl, Inc. During her seven-year tenure, she served as the brand manager for the Chick-fil-A Peach Bowl, Chick-fil-A Kickoff Game, Chick-fil-A Peach Bowl Challenge and The Dodd Trophy. Before joining the Peach Bowl, Inc. team, Black served as assistant director of communications and marketing for James Madison University. “The addition of Greg and Jessica further distinguishes the high-caliber team that defines this agency,” said Markstein managing director Eileen Markstein.
 Thom Fladung |
Hennes Communications announced that agency VP Thom Fladung has become a minority owner of the agency and assumed the role of managing partner. Bruce Hennes, who founded the firm in 1989 and is still majority shareholder, is taking the title of CEO. Fladung, who came to Hennes in 2015, worked for more than three decades in newspapers and digital media. He held the position of managing editor at the Plain Dealer, the Detroit Free Press and the Akron Beacon Journal. In addition, he served as editor of the St. Paul Pioneer Press. Fladung is "intimately familiar with the relentless content requirements of the 24/7 news cycle, and he understands how to use Facebook, Twitter and other social media — places where reputations can be burnished.”
 Ellen Schneidau |
Allison+Partners has hired Ellen Schneidau and Rebecca Harbin as senior vice presidents in its corporate practice. Based in Atlanta, they will be responsible for building the agency’s B2B communications hub in the southeast. Before coming to Allison+Partners, Schneidau worked at MSL Atlanta, co-leading its corporate practice and establishing a B2B specialty area. She has worked with clients such as Samsung, VF Corporation, Kimberly-Clark Professional, Randstad, Novelis and the Georgia Department of Economic Development. Harbin was also a co-lead of the corporate practice at MSL Atlanta, and served as a senior vice president. She led the agency’s relationship with UPS, working with the company across six vertical industries. “Adding talent like Ellen and Rebecca, who have a wealth of knowledge and expertise in this space, will help Allison+Partners capitalize on this trend and drive continued growth and evolvement of our capabilities,” said Matthew Della Croce, president, Europe + Global Corporate.
Seven Letter hires Allie Raffa, who was most recently White House correspondent for NBC News, as a senior director... Points of Light, an organization founded by President George H.W. Bush that is dedicated to volunteer service, names Jeff Zanelli as CMO... Frontieras North America, an energy and environmental technology company, appoints Nora Shepard as VP of communications.
Alcoa has named Emily Olson, who has more than 20 years of experience working in capital-intensive industries in the Americas, Europe and Asia, EVP & chief external affairs officer, effective April 6.
Longacre Square Partners has named Humza Vanderman partner and head of its London outpost as the financial communications firm expands into Europe.
FGS Global adds former Pfizer EVP and chief corporate affairs officer Sally Susman to its global executive board as an independent member, effective April 1... Codeword brings on Kim Baffi, who was previously Salesforce VP and creative director, as executive creative director... Amperity, an AI-powered customer data cloud, appoints Bridget Perry as CMO.
MOIA America, a Volkswagen Group of America subsidiary that develops and tests autonomous, all-electric ride-pooling vehicles, names Marcus Gamo head of U.S. communications... Continental Strategy brings on Francisco Petrirena as VP in its Miami office. Petrirena was previously chief of staff to former Miami city manager Art Noriega... MSQ Sport + Entertainment brings on Lauren Weil as EVP, Max Hirsch as VP of sponsorship, and Brooke Losee as VP.
