Weber Shandwick Deepens Integration Across North America with Expanded Leadership Roles 

The new, expanded roles will strengthen the agency’s ability to adapt to the unprecedented challenges clients face and build upon the agile, multi-disciplinary, geography agnostic approach Weber Shandwick took last year to address rapidly shifting issues in real-time. Jenkins and Komar – both of whom lead key geographies that have driven significant growth for the firm in recent years – will also retain their current remits.

 

“Collaborative problem solving has always been in Weber Shandwick’s DNA, but in order to respond to the intersectional challenges of 2020, we had to supercharge our efforts and harness the full power of our network to bring solutions to our clients with added speed and rigor,” said Joy Farber Kolo, president, North America. “This past year proved that our magic lives at the intersections – of our experts, our offices and our offerings – and these new roles will help us ensure the excellence we’ve seen from our multi-disciplinary task force model are continued and accelerated. I am thrilled to have Rana’s and Pam’s partnership in building an even more cohesive, collaborative and catalytic North America region for the firm.”

 

A 17-year veteran of the agency, Jenkins has provided strategic communications counsel on major multi-channel campaigns supporting policy agendas, driving behavior change and building advocacy. She played a pivotal role in Weber Shandwick’s task force approach in 2020, which by leveraging expertise across the network – including public affairs, corporate issues, change management, digital, data intelligence and more – helped the firm deliver speed and excellence at scale as the challenges facing companies, communities and individuals mounted throughout the year.

 

In her new role, Jenkins will drive collaboration and integration between the agency’s core practices and sectors, drawing on her experiences leading both the Global Public Affairs practice and the South region, which includes Baltimore, Dallas, and Washington, D.C.

Throughout her 22-year tenure, Komar has worked with the agency’s top clients across consumer marketing, retail, technology, commodity groups, consumer healthcare and professional services. She has served as the lead for the Central region for the past four years, in addition to overseeing Chicago, the agency’s second largest office for the past seven years. During her tenure, Chicago’s revenue has increased nearly 75%, and it received multiple top workplace awards, including being named a Top Workplace by The Chicago Tribune four times. As general manager, North America, Komar will work closely with regional and office leaders to drive business excellence from all 22 offices across the North America network. She will also collaborate with the HR and Workforce Innovation teams to put career and talent cultivation at the center of the agency.

 

“Weber Shandwick has vibrant operations all across North America. While every office brings a unique culture and value to our network, they are even more powerful when we’re leveraging our individual units in an intentional way to strengthen our offer as a whole,” Komar said. “I’m looking forward to working with leaders across the region to elevate our collective approach and deliver more for our clients and our people.”

 

Weber Shandwick has received several of the most prestigious agency honors in North America in the past year, including being named to Ad Age’s 2020 Agency A-List, honored as North America Agency of the Decade by PRovoke in 2020, recognized as PR Agency of the Year 2020 by Campaign U.S. and named an Honorable Mention in the 2021 Gartner Magic Quadrant for Global Marketing Agencies.