Category: News

PPHC Launches Concordant Advisory

Posted on by ally

Supports organic growth and expands PPHC’s offering in corporate advisory services.

Public Policy Holding Company, Inc., the government relations and public affairs group of companies providing a comprehensive range of advisory services, is pleased to announce the launch of Concordant Advisory (“Concordant”), a new Group operating entity that integrates its policy expertise and communications capabilities.

Delivering results under a unified plan, team, and pricing structure, Concordant will provide its clients with industry-leading government relations, public affairs, audience insight capabilities and full-service, strategic communications.

Based in Chicago, Concordant will be led by Sarah Wills, CEO. Ms Wills is a former Executive Vice President and Chief Corporate Affairs Officer at Cardinal Health, where she presided over communications, government relations, 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, an AI-enabled precision medicine business. 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.

Concordant will build multi-disciplinary teams to service client organisations that are investing for long-term growth and resilience, such as AI, progress towards a healthier planet, advancements in precision medicine and the reconfiguration of global supply chains.

Stewart Hall, CEO of PPHC, commented:

“Today’s launch of Concordant is aligned with PPHC’s organic growth strategy and will accelerate our expansion into the growing market for corporate advisory solutions. 

“I’m pleased to welcome Sarah to PPHC and look forward to partnering with her to continue to build and integrate PPHC’s unique bi-partisan policy expertise, nationwide coverage, in addition to broad public affairs and communications capabilities across our operating companies.”

Sarah Wills, CEO of Concordant, added:

“Globally, policy and politics shape every major market theme, from technology driven growth opportunities, to the risks generated from shifting geopolitics and monetary policy. In today’s uniquely dynamic market, Concordant is set to further empower c-suite leaders and boards with more control over their operating landscapes.”

Visit Concordant’s website at concordantadvisory.com

See the full RNS here.

 

MultiState Associates Launches MultiState.ai

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MultiState Associates announced the launch of a new resource this week: multistate.ai. The new email newsletter and dedicated website will explore how state and local governments are regulating artificial intelligence (AI) and related emerging technologies.

MultiState’s bi-weekly updates on AI policy will be available free of charge for the remainder of 2023, before transitioning to a subscription-only offering. Sign up by providing your email address here.

PPHC Remains On Top of Q2 Lobbyist Rankings

Posted on by thomas

WASHINGTON – PPHC maintains its position atop the second quarter LDA Rankings as all three wholly-owned firms rank in the Top 20. Crossroads Strategies, Forbes Tate Partners and Alpine Group Partners each earned spots on the list, with their combined quarterly federal lobbying disclosure revenues reaching $17.1 million.

See the full list as published in Politico’s Influence

Alpine Group’s Keenan Austin Reed Awarded Lobbyist of the Year at WGRG’s Tin Cup Awards

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WASHINGTON, DC – Washington Government Relations Group (WGRG) held the twelfth Annual Tin Cup Awards on Wednesday evening where the group presented Keenan Austin Reed, Executive Vice President at Alpine Group, with the prestigious Reginald “Reg” Gilliam Lobbyist of the Year Award. The Reginald “Reg” Gilliam Lobbyist of the Year Award is granted annually to an outstanding African-American lobbyist selected by WGRG, a non-partisan, independent, volunteer association whose goal is to enhance the leadership prowess and careers of African-American government relations professionals.

“I am both honored and humbled to receive this award from a group of my peers. I feel fortunate to do such rewarding work alongside so many talented professionals. Lobbying is a team sport, and this recognition underscores our collective effort to serve as a critical tool of our democracy, amplify the concerns of the unheard and champion causes that desperately need attention. I remain committed to using my platform to drive positive change.”

–Keenan Austin Reed, Executive Vice President, Alpine Group

In addition to her work at Alpine, Reed is the Chair and Co-Founder of the Black Women’s Congressional Alliance (BWCA), Advisory Council Chair at GlobalWIN, a member of the Congressional Black Caucus Foundation’s (CBCF) Corporate Advisory Council, and Vice Chair of SOME’s (So Others May Eat) Corporate Advisory Board. In May of 2021, Reed testified before the House Select Committee on the Modernization of Congress. The focus of her testimony was recruiting, maintaining, and empowering diverse congressional staff.

Read Alpine Group’s full press release here.

PPHC Announces Chief Financial Officer Succession; Roel Smits Elevated

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PPHC is pleased to announce that, as part of its executive officer succession planning, Roel Smits has been appointed as Chief Financial Officer with immediate effect.

Founding CFO Bill Chess remains on the Board as Executive Director and will assume the new position of Chief Administrative Officer, reporting directly to the CEO, where he will drive internal efficiency and collaboration.

Roel joined PPHC in May 2022 as Deputy CFO. He has previously acted as CFO at Kantar, the data analytics and brand consulting company owned by WPP and Bain Capital, most recently for Americas and prior also for Asia-Pacific and Africa. Prior to that, he performed senior roles at WPP (Senior VP of Corporate Development) and Dutch private equity family office HAL Investments BV. Roel has a Masters in Finance from London Business School, as well as a Masters in Economics from Erasmus University Rotterdam and an MBA in Marketing from Michigan State University.  

It is the intention that Roel will join the Board in due course subject to completion of customary due diligence and regulatory procedures.

“The appointment of Roel to the position of CFO and of Bill to the new position of Chief Administrative Officer is the result of careful succession planning and adds additional strength to the executive team. Since our IPO in December 2021, we have created a business delivering revenues of over $100m with strong EBITDA margins between 25% and 30% and we are looking forward to building on this progress in the coming years.“

-Simon Lee, Chairman, PPHC

“I am delighted to take on the role of PPHC’s CFO as we continue to deliver our clearly stated strategy and benefit from the ever-increasing importance that corporates globally are placing on government relations and public affairs. In addition to continued organic growth, PPHC is actively in discussions with a number of potential acquisition targets, both in the US and internationally – I am excited by the potential for significant growth that lies head for the Group. With deepest respect I thank my predecessor Bill Chess for all he has done for PPHC since its inception in 2014.”

-Roel Smits, CFO, PPHC

“Being part of the team that has propelled PPHC into becoming the largest provider of federal lobbying services in the US continues to be an incredible journey.  I’m looking forward to working in my new role to drive internal efficiency and collaboration as we deliver on our organic and acquisitive growth plan.“

-Bill Chess, Chief Administrative Officer, PPHC

PPHC Remains the Leader in Bloomberg Government 2022 Report

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WASHINGTON – PPHC maintains its position as leader of the top-performing lobbying firms in Bloomberg Government’s 2022 report. Forbes Tate Partners, Crossroads Strategies, and Alpine Group Partners each earned a spot on the list, with their combined 2022 federal lobbying disclosure revenues reaching $66.5 million.

Forbes Tate Partners once again earned a spot amongst the top 10 lobbying firms with the highest revenue, while Crossroads Strategies was named as a ‘Standout’ firm. The standout distinction was given to firms that retained 80% or more of their clients from 2021, retained 60% or more of their clients over three years, and earned $550,000 or more in revenue per lobbyist.

 

Read the full RNS announcement from PPHC here.

Download the full Bloomberg Government 2022 report here.

Seven Letter Adds Two New Senior-level Positions for Public Affairs Veterans Blair Taylor & Maura Hogan

Posted on by ally

WASHINGTON – Seven Letter announced today that two new senior-level positions have been added to the strategic communications firm for new hires Blair Taylor and Maura Hogan. Taylor will be operating out of Seven Letter’s DC office as Managing Director, while Hogan will be working in Seven Letter’s Boston office as Senior Director.

Taylor joins the firm after almost a decade of work in the public sector as a senior communications advisor on Capitol Hill. Her most recent role as Communications Director for Senator Richard Shelby (R-AL) and the Senate Appropriations Committee involved the navigation of many high-intensity, crisis situations including those related to the COVID-19 pandemic, the war in Ukraine, the withdrawal from Afghanistan, and the fight for border wall resources. Blair not only brings this experience with her to Seven Letter, but also a deep expertise in appropriations, defense, energy, health care, and financial services policy.

Hogan brings over a decade of both public and private sector experience to Seven Letter and her most recently held position was Senior Vice President at Direct Impact-Burson, Cohn, & Wolf (BCW). Hogan’s addition enhances the firm’s corporate communications offering with her specialization in corporate reputation, executive visibility, public affairs, and ESG/sustainability. Prior to joining the private sector, Hogan worked at the US Department of State where she served as digital communications advisor to Secretary of State John F. Kerry and chief liaison to the White House Office of Digital Strategy.

Read more about the newest additions to the Seven Letter team here.

PPHC Acquires MultiState to Broaden Client Offering and Footprint

Posted on by ally
  • $22m acquisition “fits perfectly” with PPHC strategy – PPHC CEO, Stewart Hall
  • Geographical footprint broadened to all 50 US states and across Canada
  • Enables PPHC to extend client offering into more areas, e.g. research and compliance
  • Significant cross-referring of business between MultiState and existing PPHC brands expected

The government relations and public affairs holding company PPHC is continuing to execute on its stated growth strategy and has acquired MultiState Associates, one of the largest state and local government relations specialists, for $22m. Read the full acquisition announcement here.

The deal gives PPHC a significantly expanded footprint with operations in all 50 US states as well as across Canada. It also enables PPHC to broaden its client offering given MultiState’s strength in the areas of research and compliance.

The combination of the two businesses is therefore highly complementary and a significant level of cross-referring of business between MultiState and the six other brands within PPHC’s broader network is expected. PPHC’s other brands include Crossroads Strategies, Forbes Tate Partners, Seven Letter, O’Neill & Associates, Alpine Group Partners and KP Public Affairs.

MultiState was founded in 1984 and has its headquarters in Alexandria, Virginia. It has over 300 corporate clients including several Fortune 500 constituents and has gained particular expertise over the years in representing some of the world’s best-known organisations on issues of local, state, and national importance. MultiState’s 77 employees – including all senior executives – will remain with the business.

PPHC has been undergoing significant growth and acquired KP Public Affairs, the largest advocacy and PR firm in California, for $25m in October 2022 – the most recent acquisition prior to MultiState. The pipeline of potential acquisition opportunities under development remains strong and, in considering each possible deal, PPHC will continue to look to broaden its geographical footprint, both in the US and internationally, and its service offering.

Stewart Hall, CEO of PPHC, commented:

“The acquisition of MultiState fits perfectly with our strategy of broadening our geographic footprint into key US state capitals and metropolitan areas, while extending our offering by adding key service capabilities in research and compliance. MultiState has a talented team and its strategic capabilities will solidify PPHC’s leadership position as the largest and most comprehensive public policy firm in the US. Linking our well-established businesses in Washington DC, Sacramento, California and Boston, Massachusetts to MultiState’s network in 50 states makes the Group uniquely suited to support corporate clients in the most complex risks and opportunities they face.

“Our growth in the resilient and fragmented $17+bn US strategic communications market is driven by increased inter-connectedness of federal, state and international policies and risk exposure. I am confident that our combined businesses will benefit greatly from new capabilities, new geographies and new client opportunities.”

Joseph Crosby, CEO of MultiState, commented:

“PPHC is bringing together highly specialised government relations businesses at a scale that’s never been seen. This acquisition marks a significant milestone ​during​​ ​​​MultiState​’s 40th year in business as well as for each of my talented partners and colleagues.  It also marks a milestone for our clients and the industry, as federal and state policy issues are evermore interdependent and require the professionalism and seamless integration that only PPHC and MultiState now offer.”