Jassen Strokosch

Leading the transformation of the nation’s first and oldest state-wide child welfare agency. Responsible for overseeing a $2.3B budget and leading nearly 4000 staff in 69 locations across Illinois.

• Serves as trusted member of executive leadership team within the agency and the Governor's office. Serves as the voice of the organization when needed.
• Built strong relationships with key national partners to support our strategic vision for transforming child welfare in Illinois.
• Advance policy goals in legislative, regulatory and other public arenas.
• Crisis management team lead. Executing disaster responses, conducting investigative research into emerging issues, managing internal and external communication strategies.

Led the communications, policy, advocacy and legislative affairs offices for one of the nation’s largest child welfare systems, which serves nearly 100,000 families through a $1.4 billion annual budget.

• Developed comprehensive communications strategies, craft compelling messages and implemented coordinated outreach, media and digital campaigns.
• Overseeing real-time issues management and cross-functional communications responses to crisis issues.
• Designed proactive policies and contingency plans overseeing crisis communication events and risk-mitigation management. Conducted internal drills/training, collaborating with local, state and federal agencies. Directed incident command centers and deployed protocols during crisis situations.
• Built extensive connections with state and national media.
• Serve as the agency's spokesperson, leading the response to media inquiries, and spearheading proactive media strategy to attract extensive local and national media attention.
• Provided media training for executive leadership team.
  

Responsible for creating and maintaining a positive public image for Children's Home + Aid, a renowned nonprofit organization serving families for 138 years in the places where it’s proven to be the most effective: at home, in the classroom, and in the community.

• Led the agency’s external and internal communications strategy and programming. Oversaw executive communications; crisis and issues management; government relations; organization and services positioning; event planning and marketing; social, earned and owned media strategies.
• Managed communications around large agency initiatives, including mergers and new services launches while serving as primary agency spokesperson. Built relationships with media, elected officials, state agencies and other key influencers.

Led marketing and communications for Network Ninja, industry-leading tech company that help corporations solve big problems with tailored cloud-based software.

• Developed communications strategies, supported sales and manage customer relations for the company’s three major product lines. Developed, managed and execute PR strategies including messaging, focus groups, polling, earned and owned media strategies and digital engagement.
• Executed updated marketing plans to increase branding exposure, customer traffic and sales.
• Optimized marketing approaches to capitalize on new market trends and capture new customer groups.
• Developed new brand identities, including messaging, logos, print materials, websites and social media presence.
• Led PR and branding efforts supporting various national conventions and conferences.

Co-founder of Platform Public Affairs, a strategic communications firm specializing in public affairs, crisis management, events and advance, and digital strategy and engagement.

• Served as the strategic communications partner to corporate, institutional, not-for-profit and public sector clients working in many different sectors.
• Developed, managed and executed integrated communications, public affairs and government relations strategies for clients.
• Worked with clients to prepare for and manage issues and crisis. Helped clients think about and plan for potential issues before they occur, as well as jump right in should a situation arise.
• Develop and manage PR and marketing strategies for major events including concerts, sporting events and conventions.

Served as Vice President for Jasculca Terman Strategic Communications, an award winning, independently-owned strategic communications firm specializing in public affairs, crisis management, events and international advance and digital strategy and engagement. Guided always by strategy, deployed an array of tactics to mobilize opinion and action to advance public policy, business and public awareness initiatives.

• Worked with clients as an advocate in the court of public opinion, working in partnership to develop and implement creative strategies driven by compelling messages that engage and motivate.
• Led the agency’s digital practice.
• Developed online reputation management division, including 24/7 monitoring and response to emerging client crises.
• Managed planning and PR for major events.
• Led numerous public affairs and advocacy campaigns.
• Developed messaging and outreach strategies for major public policy campaigns.
• Directed public relations, media relations and crisis communications campaigns.

Served as a program support specialist for Rush Medical Center's Department of Psychiatry.

• Developed in-house technologies to support the needs of various research programs.
• Built easy to use web based tools to allow researchers to collaborate online.
• Developed outreach and marketing strategies for recruiting research participants.
• Developed websites and online outreach campaigns for various research programs.