HAWTHORNE STRATEGY GROUP - Key Persons

Job Titles:

• ACCOUNT MANAGER
• Member of the Trusted Team

At a young age, Alexis realized she had a knack for writing and storytelling. Little did she know that winning her fifth-grade essay writing contest would ignite her passion, and eventually catapult her into a career in communications. Initially on track to be a journalist, her perspective shifted when her summer internship at a Las Vegas local news station exposed her to the world of public relations. Alexis was so intrigued with PR that she decided to change course during her last semester of undergrad. Alexis got her start at a Las Vegas marketing agency as a PR Coordinator representing unique dating apps-pitching stories about niche dating and romance. She is most proud of landing a story in Marie Claire magazine and working on a docuseries for VICE TV before pivoting her career to nonprofit communications. Alexis spent nearly seven years supporting Feeding America's hunger relief efforts in Las Vegas and Chicago; this helped broaden her communications arsenal to include internal, executive and strategic communications. Her projects ran the gamut, from drafting weekly executive emails to creating impact reports for multi-million-dollar donors such as Michael Jordan. Sometimes you might even find her in front of the camera representing her hometown food bank in Las Vegas as a media spokesperson. During the height of the pandemic, Alexis led the communication strategy for Feeding America's first virtual conference series and launched an internal newsletter targeting 8,000+ employees across the country.

Job Titles:

• Member of the Trusted Team
• SENIOR ACCOUNT EXECUTIVE

Nothing gives Anahi Leyva greater joy than knowing that her work positively impacts clients. Her passion for communication started when she realized the influence that strong storytellers could have on the world. After just one course in public relations, she knew that was the field she wanted to work in.

Job Titles:

• CEO
• Member of the Trusted Team
• PRESIDENT

As President and CEO of Hawthorne Strategy Group, Cynthia McCafferty provides Hawthorne clients with an unrelenting commitment to service. Don't let her title fool you, Cynthia does more than manage internal operations and lead new business development. Our fearless leader loves leading a small firm because she still gets to roll up her sleeves and work side-by-side with her team and our wide array of clients. Cynthia joined Hawthorne in 2015, after nearly two decades at FleishmanHillard International Communications in St. Louis, where she served as a senior vice president and senior partner. While at FH, Cynthia became an expert in strategy and integrated campaign management. One of Cynthia's final projects at FH was leading the Get Covered Illinois campaign alongside her future Hawthorne colleagues, Gene Reineke and Wendi Taylor Nations. Through this joint campaign, which won a half dozen awards, Illinois enrolled nearly 1 million residents for health insurance and placed Illinois as a national leader in ACA implementation. Following the success of that partnership, Cynthia brought her talents to Hawthorne where she has been elevating communication programs for clients ever since. Her clientele has included the Women's Business Development Center, Chicago Dental Society, and the Illinois Governor's Mansion Association, along with national and international brands such as SAC Wireless, Evinrude, and Red Bull. Under Cynthia's leadership, the Hawthorne team developed a fresh identity for Chicago's McCormick Place as it expanded into new facilities, resulting in increased engagement with community influencers. She also led the development and execution of a corporate social responsibility (CSR) audit for KCI, an Acelity company. Through the audit process, Cynthia led the Hawthorne team in creating a three-year action plan to improve KCI's corporate reputation, rooted in a deep understanding of industry best practices.

Job Titles:

• Member of the Trusted Team
• Managing Superviso R

Job Titles:

• CHAIRMAN
• FOUNDER
• Member of the Trusted Team

Job Titles:

• Member of the Trusted Team
• SENIOR ACCOUNT MANAGER

Beginning his career in journalism, Jonathon covered a wide range of beats in newsrooms across Chicago and Wisconsin, from local government and state politics to entertainment and the COVID-19 pandemic. With multiple awards for his reporting, feature writing, and investigative reporting, Jonathon made the decision to take his communications talents to the world of public relations. Prior to joining Hawthorne, Jonathon was most recently the managing editor of an award-winning digital news outlet where he helped lead a data-driven partnership between editorial and marketing staff to quadruple the outlet's audience across social media and email newsletter platforms. Jonathon uses his track record of multimedia content production, social media management, and audience growth to help brands widen their reach and spread their message across all verticals. His client work at Hawthorne includes writing owned media, drafting internal communications, managing and responding to media inquiries, and monitoring coverage.

Job Titles:

• Member of the Trusted Team
• Managing Supervisor

Job Titles:

• Executive Vice President
• Member of the Trusted Team
• Partner