Team
For the second year in a row, SMW Chicago will be hosted by Zócalo Group and the Chicago Tribune.
Zócalo Group is a full-service word-of-mouth and social media marketing agency, helping leading consumer and business to business brands become the most talked about and recommended in their category. Based in Chicago, Zócalo Group has received numerous industry awards for brand programs and measurement initiatives, including New Media Agency of the Year (Holmes Report) in 2009. Zócalo Group is a unit of Omnicom Group Inc. (NYSE: OMC) and Ketchum.
For 163 years, the Chicago Tribune has been a market-leading publication of the Tribune Company. Reaching five million readers each week in print, online and through radio, television and live events, the Tribune is known for its public service journalism and watchdog reporting. In 2010, the Tribune launched Trib Nation, a community outreach and audience engagement program that includes a broad menu of live events such as Chicago Forward: Conversations About the Future, a series of public policy discussions; programs by columnists and other journalists; literary events including Author Talks, Lit Fest, and Literary Awards; and classes and seminars under the banner TribU: Lessons for Life.
Meet the Chicago Team:
Paul Rand
President and CEO, Zócalo Group
Paul M. Rand is the president and CEO of Zócalo Group with responsibility for overall client strategy and satisfaction as well as the leadership and growth of the Zócalo Group team.
Prior to launching Zócalo Group, Paul was a Partner and Global Chief Development and Innovation Officer at Ketchum as well as member of the firm’s global Executive Committee. He also served as Director of Ketchum’s Global Technology Practice and Managing Director of Ketchum Midwest. Paul has more than 20 years of strategic communications experience, with expertise in corporate, industry analyst, financial, crisis, employee, business-to-business, media and marketing communications.
In addition to his role at Zócalo Group, Paul also serves on the Board as Immediate Past President of the Word of Mouth Marketing Association (WOMMA) and is widely regarded as a leading expert in Word of Mouth / WOM Marketing and brand evangelism.
Andrea Wood
Executive Vice President/Executive Director Operations, Zócalo Group
Andrea oversees all agency operations and staff management at Zócalo Group. Her exceptional people skills and passion for relationship building have helped Zócalo Group create a dynamic corporate culture amid fantastic growth for the firm. Her leadership is a big reason our clients and employees know us as a company where service, accountability and innovation thrive.
She brings more than 20 years of marketing and communication experience in industries from automotive to telecom and with brands from floor tiles to antacids and quick service restaurants to big box retailers. She most recently served as Managing Director of the Chicago office of Clear!Blue Communications where in addition to leading and growing the office and key client relationships she also directed the experiential marketing firm’s public relations practice. In her more than twelve years at Golin Harris, Andrea lead the firm’s corporate branding work with Sprint and Kmart as well as an agency-of-record engagement with Chrysler and then DaimlerChrysler.
