It’s a season of change here at Gard Communications.
Based in part on input gleaned from a successful company retreat earlier this year, we recently implemented some changes that have seen a few significant promotions among our team.
First off, Chelsea Punian has been promoted to the role of Director of PR and Public Affairs. A former senior public affairs account manager who joined Gard in 2021, Chelsea has been instrumental in helping some of our public affairs clients successfully navigate challenging political and policy issues and land significant wins. She’s vibrant, insightful and packs a punch with her experience, which includes a stint as Chief of Staff for Oregon State Senator Ginny Burdick and a law degree from Lewis & Clark Law School.
“Chelsea has been performing at an incredibly high level since the day she joined us here at Gard,” said Liz Fuller, Gard’s president and CEO. “Moving her into this new role not only helps us better structure our public relations and public affairs teams, but it puts Chelsea in a position where she can really let her talents and leadership take center stage.”
Additionally, Hannah Smith has been named our new Associate Director of PR. A public relations pro with more than a decade of experience under her belt before joining Gard in 2022, Hannah brought with her a real penchant for detail, organization and making her clients shine. She came to Gard as a skillful account manager and worked with a range of clients across various industries – health care, manufacturing, food and beverage and nonprofit – before moving into her new role.
“Hannah’s work and the results she delivers for our clients has been nothing short of outstanding,” Fuller said. “When we started thinking about who would truly shine in the role of Associate Director of PR and inspire our PR team to perform at the highest level, Hannah came into focus right away. With her and Chelsea in these new roles, we feel like Gard is really well positioned for our next chapter.”