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| Taylor Gray |
Zeno Group names Taylor Gray EVP and head of Zeno Atlanta, effective Jan. 5. Prior to joining Zeno, Gray was head of global masterbrand, mainstream, premium & suites brands at IHG Hotels & Resorts, leading communications for 12 hospitality brands across the Americas. Before joining IHG, she was a VP at MSL and senior account supervisor at Edelman. Gray will lead Zeno’s Atlanta presence and guide a multidisciplinary team spanning such capabilities as brand and corporate affairs, earned media, digital, creator, and data & intelligence. “Atlanta is a strategically important growth market for Zeno,” said Zeno U.S. president Grant Deady. “As client needs continue to evolve in complexity and scale, investing in local senior leadership allows us to deepen those relationships, move faster, and expand our impact across the region.”
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| Madeleine Davidson |
The Professional Women’s Hockey League brings on Madeleine Davidson as director, communications, West Coast. Davidson joins PWHL from the Toronto Blue Jays and Rogers Centre, where she served as director, business communications. She was previously a senior account executive at Edelman. In her new role, Davidson will be a strategic business partner to the media relations leads for PWHL’s expansion teams in Seattle and Vancouver, supporting them through their inaugural season and helping establish strong communications foundations. She will also lead communications for several leaguewide business initiatives across corporate partnerships, ticketing, marketing and other areas. “She understands what it takes to support an organization that’s establishing itself, building, and scaling at the same time, and that perspective will be incredibly valuable as the league continues to expand,” said PWHL VP of communications and external affairs Mandy Gutmann.
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| Vanessa Lai |
R/GA appoints Vanessa Lai as group creative director, intelligent systems, a newly created role. Lai joins the agency from Monks, where she most recently served as group innovation director. Her work spanned AI-powered storytelling, immersive environments and hybrid experiences that blended the physical, digital, and virtual. At R/GA, Lai will act as a key connector across the company, partnering closely with Addition, a leading AI System Design and Development studio that was acquired by R/GA earlier this year. “Vanessa brings the rare blend of creativity, technical fluency, and systems thinking that’s needed today,” said R/GA global chair and chief creative officer Tiffany Rolfe.
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| Ian Stone |
LifeSci Communications promotes agency president Ian Stone to CEO, charged with guiding the agency’s growth and strengthening its partnerships with healthcare companies. He will be based in LifeSci’s new San Diego Office alongside teams from LifeSci Consulting and LifeSci Advisors. Stone previously held senior leadership roles at Canale Communications, where he led media relations and supported the organization’s growth and eventual integration into Inizio Evoke Communications. “Ian has demonstrated the leadership and vision that make him the right person to lead our next chapter,” said founding partner of LifeSci Communications and LifeSci Partners Andrew McDonald.
Sarah Knakmuhs, who formerly led H/Advisors Abernathy’s DC office, is joining the Financial Services Forum as chief communications and strategy officer.
Brian Hughes, chief of staff at NASA, has joined Mercury Public Affairs as a partner in its Tallahassee office.
Narrative Strategies brings on Stacia Tipton as managing director... Prosek Partners promotes Deirdre Bolton, Josh Clarkson and Jon Schwartz to partner... YAP Global, an international digital assets PR firm, promotes Otto Jacobsson, who has served as CFO of the firm since 2020, to CEO. 
Cindy Leggett-Flynn, who most recently led communications at Credit Suisse, is coming on board at Swiss multinational private bank and wealth management firm Julius Baer Group as group head of communications.
The Pollack Group brings on John Cheng as creative director and Daniel Chou as director of digital strategy... Baretz+Brunelle, an advisory firm that works with legal industry businesses, brings on Daniel Gilfarb, as a senior managing director in its talent practice.... Prophet names Mat Zucker, who has served as interim CMO for the past two years, to the full-time CMO position.
