Prior to founding TrailRunner, Jim served as SVP, Head of International Corporate Affairs for Alibaba Group, the world’s largest online and mobile marketplace. At Alibaba Group, Jim played a key leadership role in the company’s historic IPO in 2014. He also designed and led Alibaba’s international communications strategy, and he built the company’s international corporate communications and government relations teams.

Prior to joining Alibaba Group, Jim served as Executive Vice President, Communications for PepsiCo, a global food and beverage leader with net revenues of more than $65 billion. Jim joined PepsiCo from Brunswick Group, where he served in San Francisco as Managing Partner for International Business and Financial Strategy, providing strategic counsel on global corporate mandates spanning international operations, corporate and financial communications, corporate reputation, investor relations, crisis management, and litigation. Jim also worked for Brunswick Group in Texas, where he established and built the firm’s Dallas/Fort Worth office.

Prior to Brunswick Group, Jim served as Chief of Staff for U.S. Secretary of the Treasury Henry M. Paulson, serving as Paulson’s senior strategist and counselor, and working on matters of financial policy and crisis management. Prior to his work for the Treasury, Jim served as Senior Advisor to U.S. Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice and worked with Rice in The White House at the National Security Council as Deputy National Security Advisor for Communications. From 2002-2003, Jim was Director of Strategic Communications for General Tommy R. Franks at U.S. Central Command, and from 2000-2001 served in the White House as Deputy Assistant to the President and Deputy Director of Communications. Prior to working in the White House, Jim spent several years working in the U.S. Congress for House Majority Leader Dick Armey (R-TX) and the National Republican Congressional Committee.

Jim served as an officer in the U.S. Navy Reserves, and also taught international communications at The Johns Hopkins University. Jim holds degrees from the University of Texas at Arlington (BBA, Finance) and The Johns Hopkins University (MA), and he is a graduate of the Yale University School of Management Global Executive Leadership Program. Jim is currently working on his MA in Biblical Studies and Theology at Wheaton College.

Jim serves as a national board member for the Make-A-Wish Foundation, on the Board of Trustees for The Women’s Sports Foundation, and on the Board of Directors for Headstrong – a national mental health treatment practice of choice for our nation’s military, veterans, and their family members.

Jim is an endurance sports enthusiast and enjoys trail running, playing chess, snowboarding, and playing acoustic guitar. Jim also has a love of aviation and is a commercially rated pilot.

Oliver co-founded Pagefield in 2010 after a decade working inside British and European political institutions, industry trade bodies, and high-profile listed companies. He is an integrated campaigning specialist, with over twenty years’ experience protecting, promoting and rebuilding corporate reputations through a combination of public affairs, public relations and crisis communications. During that time, he has built close and lasting relationships with people from across the political divide, within the media, and throughout the business and charitable sectors.

Before Pagefield, Oliver led ITV plc’s public and stakeholder affairs efforts to free the company from legacy regulation that was hindering its chances of success in the digital age – the fruits of which are now being enjoyed by the company as it returns to the FTSE 100. It was at ITV where Oliver first met and worked with Mark Gallagher. Oliver performed similar integrated campaigning roles at the Royal Institution of Chartered Surveyors, the UK Film Council, and the Society of Motor Manufacturers. Earlier on in his career, Oliver worked in the then Office of the Deputy Prime Minister, following a year as an assistant to a British MEP in Brussels and Strasbourg.

As Pagefield’s Chief Executive, Oliver has overseen the company’s rapid growth to become one of London’s go-to agencies for integrated communications across multiple sectors – including fintech and tech, professional services, transport, property, infrastructure, FMCG, and the charitable sector. Oliver performs the role of floating strategic advisor, available to all of Pagefield’s clients at any time. This role has included sitting on the steering committee for British Airways’ centenary campaign in 2019; personally overseeing a Treasury-related campaign for regulatory reform that was designed to attract multi-million pound ‘onshoring’ investments into the UK; and chairing regular executive training sessions for clients ahead of particularly challenging political and media appearances.

Oliver is a Freeman of the City of London and Liveryman of the Worshipful Company of Haberdashers; is one of Mace Magazine’s top 100 political consultants; features in the annual PR Week Power Book; and – in 2022 – was appointed to the Board of the National Centre for Social Research, joined the Advisory Board of Omaze (the global for-profit fundraising company which partners with charities in fundraising events), and in 2024 joins the board of Durham University.

For 35 years, Cassandra Walker Pye has enjoyed a successful career in communications, government, politics and advocacy for corporate interests in global, national, state and local arenas. She joined Lucas Public Affairs in October 2019.

Cassandra provides strategic counsel to the firm’s clients from all sectors and industries and guides a team of accomplished public affairs professionals in leading strategic communications and public affairs campaigns on clients’ behalf.

Cassandra has served in leadership roles in the public and private sectors in Sacramento and in Washington, DC. In 2014, she launched 3.14 Communications, LLC, a full-service communication consultancy with clients in a range of sectors. She began her career at the Food Marketing Institute and directed government relations operations for the California Grocers Association and the California Retailers Association. As senior vice president for APCO Worldwide, Cassandra co-led the agency’s global food and consumer products practice group. In 2003, Cassandra was appointed deputy chief of staff to California Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger and served as a member of his post-election transition team. She is former political director and corporate affairs vice president for the California Chamber of Commerce, where she launched the JobsPAC, ChamberPAC and the Coalition for California Jobs.

Cassandra brings crisis management, corporate communication, message development and issue/political campaign experience to the firm. Since 2016, she’s been a lead facilitator, throughout the country, for the American Leadership Forum’s (ALF) Leading Consciously trainings, providing insights into unconscious (implicit) bias and its impact on societal structures and institutions.

Cassandra is a graduate of George Washington University. She is a passionate professional soccer fan and was among the original group of supporters for Sacramento Republic Football Club. Cassandra and husband Kelvin have four adult sons. They reside in Sacramento.

Sarah Wills was previously the Executive Vice President and Chief Corporate Affairs Officer at Cardinal Health, where she presided over communications, government relations, ESG, enterprise marketing and brand. Prior to Cardinal Health, Sarah served in leadership roles within government relations, communications and strategy at GE, and led corporate affairs at Tempus AI, a precision medicine company.

Before her corporate career, Sarah spent fifteen years in politics and policy, initially as an Associate for David Axelrod and Associates, then several years as a Legislative Assistant on Capitol Hill, Senior Policy Counsel to the Governor of New Jersey, and Executive Director for New Jobs for New York, a 501(c)(3) launched by then U.S. Senator Hillary Rodham Clinton.

Jeff Strunk is a Partner at Forbes Tate Partners – he joined the firm in 2013.

Mr. Strunk spent eight years on Capitol Hill, including six years with House Republican Leadership – most recently serving as Deputy Floor Director to former Speaker of the House John Boehner.

Jeff regularly works with Fortune 500 companies, trade organizations, and coalitions. He represents client interests on a range of issues, and brings particular expertise in regards to financial products and services, banking, energy, and telecommunications issues. He also operates at the nexus between these policy areas and tax and cybersecurity issues.

Prior to serving as Deputy Floor Director to former Speaker of the House John Boehner, Mr. Strunk spent three years as Floor Assistant. Prior to his time with Boehner, Mr. Strunk worked for former Congressman Patrick J. Tiberi, a previous Chairman of the influential Ways and Means Committee’s Subcommittee on Health.

During his time in House Leadership, Mr. Strunk formed incredibly strong relationships with members of Congress from both sides of the aisle – and, also, their staffers. He developed expertise in parliamentary procedure, House Rules, and a thorough understanding of the inner workings of House Leadership and Congress.

Mr. Strunk’s roots connect him to a wide variety of House Committees. He frequently works with members of the House Ways and Means, Financial Services, Energy and Commerce, Judiciary, and Transportation and Infrastructure Committees. Jeff also maintains deep ties to both the House Intelligence and Homeland Security Committees.

Jeff has long been active in the Republican Party – both in Ohio and at the national level. He has worked on the campaign of Patrick J. Tiberi, as well as volunteered on numerous other Congressional campaigns.

Strunk’s background also includes his ongoing role with an organized volunteer campaign effort in his home state of Ohio. For more than six years, he has led an independent GOTV program in the Buckeye State that helps to provide grassroots support to Republican candidates at the local, state, and federal levels.

A native of Columbus, Ohio, Mr. Strunk is a graduate of Xavier University, where he received his Bachelor’s degree in Political Science.

He and his wife and three children live in Washington, DC.

Michelle Baker is a partner and head of client strategy on the Public Affairs team at Forbes Tate Partners.

She is public affairs and communications leader experienced across major corporate, government and nonprofit stakeholders. With a broad understanding of today’s complex policy, communications, and advocacy landscape, Michelle crafts groundbreaking initiatives addressing today’s pressing policy and advocacy challenges.

Michelle has spearheaded major campaigns and programming in health care, education, food, agriculture, defense, tech, and other industries. Her broad health care experience includes leading corporate and public affairs work across health systems, biopharmaceutical companies, government agencies, payers, professional medical associations, and nonprofits. In addition, Michelle developed and led coalitions and campaigns focused on a range of health issues including heart disease, cancer, pharmaceutical safety, vaccinations, addiction, and emerging public health threats.

Previously she worked as Chief of Staff at Ketchum where she developed and led their health equity offering, as well as a mental health communications consultancy.  Other public affairs experience includes leading the health practice at Weber Shandwick/Powell Tate, and as a senior leader at Signal Group and Chandler Chicco Agency/Syneos Communications.

An advocate for family caregiving and memory care, Michelle is a board member of the Caregiver’s Action Network (CAN) and is the Chair of the Board of Trustees of Arts for the Aging (AFTA).

Shayne Woods joined the Alpine Group after working on Capitol Hill for almost a decade, most recently serving as Senior Legislative Assistant for Senator Tim Scott of South Carolina. An entrepreneur and policy expert, with expertise in both health care and tech, Shayne has a deep understanding of critical legislative issues. In Senator Scott’s office, Shayne’s legislative areas of focus included health care, Social Security, retirement, budget, and commerce, science, and transportation issues. He also led a team that advised Senator Scott on tax, trade, aging, and education issues. Additionally, Shayne prepared public statements, drafted correspondence, and met with constituents and advocacy groups regarding the aforementioned issues.

His close work with both the Senate Finance and Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions (HELP) Committee resulted in securing numerous extensions for health care provisions. As the Senate discussed artificial intelligence (AI), Shayne ensured Senator Scott was kept well-apprised of these discussions with his team serving as a knowledgeable resource on the issue. His background in health care and tech has given him a deep appreciation for emerging technologies like AI and gene therapies and the challenging regulatory landscape facing innovators. Prior to joining Senator Scott’s team in 2021, Shayne worked in the U.S. House of Representatives for six years, previously serving as Senior Policy Advisor for Representative Gus Bilirakis of Florida.

Prior to Capitol Hill, Shayne was the Founder and Chief Executive Officer of FwdHealth [pronounced “forward health”] – a health IT company that connected clients and their health apps to a network of nationally-certified fitness trainers through live, two-way video chat. In addition to FwdHealth, Shayne also founded and ran a health care consulting practice that advised key industry stakeholders on the Affordable Care Act while providing business development assistance.

Shayne holds a B.A. from Washington University in St. Louis and resides in Northern Virginia with his wonderful wife and 2 children.

Senator Breaux led a long and distinguished career in the US Congress. He was elected to the House of Representatives in 1972 at the age of 28 – at the time of his election, he was the youngest member of Congress. He represented the 7th District of Louisiana for 14 years before being elected to the United States Senate in 1986. Senator Breaux was a widely recognized bipartisan leader in the Senate, and in 1993, was appointed by his Democratic colleagues to the post of Chief Deputy Whip, a position he held until his retirement. He also held a number of key Senate committee positions.

A senior member of the Finance Committee, Senator Breaux served as the Chairman of the Subcommittee on Social Security and Family Policy. He also held positions on two other Finance subcommittees, the Subcommittee on Health Care and the Subcommittee on Taxation and IRS Oversight. Senator Breaux also served on the Senate Commerce, Science and Technology Committee, where he was a leader on telecommunications and transportation issues, along with his work on fisheries and ocean policy.

Lucy Panza is an Executive Vice President at Crossroads Strategies, LLC. Lucy primarily advocates for clients in the judiciary, tech, appropriations, and immigration policy areas, providing strategic counsel to clients as well as direct advocacy before Congress.

Before joining Crossroads, Lucy spent three years at Amazon on the political affairs team. There, Lucy focused on outreach to Senate Democrats and the Congressional Hispanic Caucus on a wide range of issues, including competition and antitrust, workplace health and safety, tax, immigration, telecommunications, postal and delivery logistics, sustainability and environmental corporate responsibility, diversity in media and film, customer privacy issues, and more. Lucy was also proud to help lead Amazon’s Political Action Committee and political giving strategy. 

Lucy began her career in the United States Senate, first with Senator Barbara Boxer (D-CA) and then with Democratic Leader Charles E. Schumer. She first joined Leader Schumer’s team as Counsel when he was serving on the Senate Judiciary Committee, where she focused on immigration, domestic violence, and terrorism victim issues, and then in the leadership office, where she led on these issues on behalf of the Leader and the entire caucus. During her time in the Leader’s office, Lucy was proud to play a critical role in passing dozens of pieces of legislation, ranging from government funding bills to new immigrant green card provisions, to the Violence Against Women Act reauthorization, to a bevy of new laws compensating victims of terror. Lucy also helped to shepherd the caucus through two government shutdowns.

Lucy holds a J.D. from Georgetown University Law Center and a B.A. from New York University. She is a proud immigrant from Argentina and resides in Maryland with her family.

Brendan is one of Washington’s top communications strategists and has been at the center of many of the biggest policy and political battles of our time.

At Seven Letter, Brendan taps his unique experience to counsel corporations, associations and non-profits on message strategy, media engagement, ally development and reputation management.

With the rare distinction of having served two consecutive Speakers of the House, Brendan has an acute understanding of the convergence of Capitol Hill, the White House and the media. Prior to joining Seven Letter, Brendan spent more than a decade on Capitol Hill, where he navigated countless crises and helped drive the enactment of landmark tax, trade and budget legislation. Most recently, he was counselor to House Speaker Paul Ryan, leading messaging and communications strategy for the speaker and the broader House Republican leadership team. Before that, Brendan served as communications director at the House Ways and Means Committee, where he shepherded enactment of bipartisan Trade Promotion Authority legislation.

Brendan also spent time working in corporate communications, serving as vice president for communications at America’s Health Insurance Plans. At AHIP, he was the insurance industry’s top spokesman and drove a major campaign on health care affordability.

Prior to that, Brendan was press secretary to House Speaker John Boehner. Under Speaker Boehner, Brendan worked extensively with the White House press corps to shape the coverage of the Obama administration. Brendan was also on the 2012 Romney-Ryan presidential campaign, serving as press secretary to the Vice President nominee. He’s held several other senior communications roles on Capitol Hill, including for now Speaker Kevin McCarthy and former Rep. Tom Price.

Frequently quoted in print and a familiar face on television, Brendan is a Political Analyst for MSNBC and NBC News and is regularly sought out for his insights and commentary on politics and the issues of the day. In 2022, he was a Resident Fellow at the Harvard Kennedy School’s Institute of Politics.

POLITICO named him to its inaugural Power 30 list in 2017, and in 2020, PR Week named him to their annual ’40 Under 40’. He was also named a ‘40 Under 40’ alumnus by the University of Georgia, which is where you can find him many Saturdays during football season.

As a social scientist and researcher, Matt’s track record of success showcases the most impactful messaging strategies, creative concepts, and contextual audience segmentation analysis available on the market.

With a solid foundation in a diverse set of qualitative and quantitative research methodologies, Matt excels at extracting compelling narratives and insights from data analysis.

Matt’s strategic communications research career spans 13 years as a partner with Luntz Global Partners (a boutique message research group) as well as his own independent strategic research firm, Matt George Associates.

His clients include Fortune 500 companies, education and environmental nonprofits, entertainment creators, issue advocacy groups, tech companies and trade associations.

Drawing on a background of international relations, policy analysis, and statistics, Matt’s research approach is grounded in attention-to-detail and a focus on understanding context. By identifying underlying biases that explain why consumers, voters, and donors behave the way that they do, Matt’s research goes beyond WHAT… it explains WHY.

Matt attended the University of Michigan in Ann Arbor, where he received dual bachelor’s degrees in political science and film studies, and has a Masters of International Security Policy Studies from The George Washington University’s Elliot School of International Affairs. He lives in Springfield, Virginia with his wife and two children.