Weber Shandwick Announces New Southwest Management Appointments
DALLAS, Dec. 16, 2011 – Weber Shandwick, one of the world’s leading global public relations firms, today announced new management team appointments for its Southwest operations.
David Nieland, who has been with the firm for more than 20 years, has been named acting general manager for the Dallas office, reporting to Weber Shandwick North America President Cathy Calhoun. Nieland will work with the firm’s Southwest leadership team to lead the Dallas operation, support major client assignments and drive continued growth in the region. Jody Venturoni, former president of Weber Shandwick’s Southwest operations, left the firm to pursue other interests.
The company also announced senior-level promotions and senior staff additions. Chris Vary, a leader in digital and emerging media at the firm, has been promoted to executive vice president, client services. Ryan Mikolasik and Neil Nowlin, who have both been with Weber Shandwick since 2004 and who are instrumental on key client business, have also been promoted to executive vice president. In addition, Alison McMillon, an eight-year veteran who leads clients in the B2B and oil & gas markets, was promoted to senior vice president, and Beth Pederson was promoted to creative director in the Visual Communications practice.
The firm also continues to add senior expertise to its industry-leading Digital Communications practice. Matt Dickman has joined Weber Shandwick’s corporate digital team as executive vice president, social business innovation, based in Dallas. Dickman was previously senior partner and global digital/social practice co-chair at Fleishman-Hillard. He is the author of techno+marketer (http://technomarketer.typepad.com), a top marketing blog and the curated site http://technoculture.tumblr.com, which focuses on the impact of the future of technology, culture and media.
In addition, Maggie Thill has re-joined Weber Shandwick as vice president in the Dallas office. Maggie has held senior-level positions with FedEx, Kinko’s and the Dallas Arboretum.
“Weber Shandwick is finishing another strong year of double-digit growth in its Southwest operations and in every major region around the world,” said Andy Polansky, president of Weber Shandwick. “We will continue to invest in our people and in depth of expertise for our clients.”