As the lines between marketing disciplines continue to blur, integration is no longer optional; it’s essential. On the PR’s Top Pros Talk podcast, Doug Simon, CEO of D S Simon Media, spoke with Shannon Walsh, President of PR, Social and Influence and Chief Operating Officer for Ogilvy Health, about her transition from PR to a broader leadership role. Also, how she’s helping unify teams and strengthen client relationships in a rapidly evolving healthcare landscape.

In her new position, Shannon oversees the PR, social, and influence disciplines in addition to her COO responsibilities. “It has really been, for me, a great pivot in my career to not only be so embedded within the PR and communications discipline, but now really seeing how it all connects and being able to help pull it through to the rest of the agency,” she explains. With a renewed focus on collaboration, Ogilvy Health’s leadership is embracing what Shannon calls an earned-first approach, a philosophy that places credibility and authenticity at the center of every marketing effort. That mindset, she says, is reshaping the creative process. “What I'm seeing is that earned first lens is actually taking the lead on a lot of the thinking and ensuring that that's baked into programming, to the idea creation, to the creative.” For communicators, this evolution is long overdue. “It’s a great time to be in the PR, social, and influence realm,” Shannon adds.

Maintaining lasting client relationships has become increasingly challenging as marketing leaders face shorter tenures and constant organizational change. For Shannon, the solution is simple but demanding: partnership over service. “It all comes down to maintaining healthy client relationships,” she says. “It just simply doesn't cut it to have a vendor-client relationship. It comes down to really becoming that indispensable strategic partner and not just a service provider.” That level of trust, she adds, comes from understanding the client’s business as deeply as your own and showing it. In a healthcare environment defined by scientific innovation, regulatory shifts, and digital transformation, agencies that can anticipate needs and connect insights across disciplines will stand apart.

One of Shannon’s signature philosophies is what she calls casting a team, an approach that prioritizes empathy, diversity of thought, and deep understanding of client complexity. “We all have talent within our agencies, but it's really about building that deep, empathetic team that mirrors the complexity of the client's needs,” she explains. She believes an ideal team blends different perspectives and strengths: the strategist who connects communications to broader business goals, the operations driver who ensures precision in delivery, and the “client whisperer” who builds trust and anticipates needs. “If you have that trifecta of people,” Shannon says, “that’s really when the magic happens.”

Leading multiple disciplines also means ensuring they move as one. Shannon credits open communication and shared goals for keeping collaboration strong. Before any new assignment, her leadership team aligns on client needs and the expertise required. “At the end of the day, everyone can really agree on, okay, this is what's going to make us grow in the long run,” she says. “Opportunities will still come to us if we're delivering on the basic needs of the client.” When it comes to client relationships, Shannon says openness must flow both ways. “Everyone has a different way of working. So, I think having flexibility to help shape the team that you're working with is critical for success.” But she also emphasizes candor, even in small matters. “If something doesn’t sit well, get it out on the table,” she says. “Sometimes we just don’t want to keep on making mistakes… our ultimate goal is to make the client happy.”

For Shannon, leadership in today’s environment requires constant reinvention grounded in purpose. The earned-first mindset she champions isn’t just about how stories are told; it’s about how relationships are built, inside agencies and with clients alike. As she puts it, success depends on understanding the “why” behind every collaboration and ensuring every team member, discipline, and message moves in sync with it.

View all of the interviews in the “PR's Top Pros Talk” series. Interested in taking part? Contact Doug Simon at [email protected].

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Suchi Sherpa is a Marketing Communications Specialist at D S Simon Media, a leading firm specializing in satellite media tours.