Strategic Planning Director
Hired: February 2009
Background:
Helen has spent the past decade immersed in marketing strategy from Account Management roles to Account Planning and Trend Forecasting. This range of experience allows her to aid clients' needs with a holistic perspective, addressing both marketing and business goals.
Education:
University of Kansas (Go Jayhawks!)
BS in Journalism with emphasis in Advertising
Pre RMG:
Prior to joining the team at Risdall, Helen was an Account Planner at Martin Williams where she led strategic account development and began implementation of an agency trend report reviewing consumer drivers and actions to help clients develop business strategies for the future.
Before Martin Williams, Helen worked within the Marketing and Guest Insight Center at Target to research and assess key audiences, consumer trends, and primary competitors. She also generated category and business opportunity reports, as well as trend reports, for cross-functional teams to aid development of new products and services.
Before that, Helen was an Senior Account Manager at Gabriel deGrood Bendt (GdB) and Fallon Worldwide where she led strategic direction with internal teams, composing strategic briefs and marketing plans designed to interpret and focus the clients' goals and challenges in the market.
Notable achievements at Risdall:
Helen developed and analyzed an online benchmark survey of brand perceptions for two car brands within the Twin Cities market for a major automobile manufacturer.
For Innovative Office Solutions, Helen developed a new brand position utilizing the Friendship model by assessing the marketplace and competitors, as well as taking a futuristic approach to long term corporate development through a trend forecasting report about the future of offices, benefits, and employee-employer dynamics.
For a leading health care provider, Helen directed a comprehensive review of the industry with a deep dive into motivations of key professional and patient target audiences. She also researched trends within the home therapy market and patient-doctor dynamics. Currently, she is developing a new brand position, strategic marketing plan, and communications plan.
And Elsewhere:
As a planner at Martin Williams, Helen helped create the new Payless ShoeSource line of eco-friendly shoes. Starting with merchandising, she worked to identify consumer trends in the green sphere affecting manufacturing and materials. She then helped identify consumer segments that most appealed to the new line allowing a greater focus in marketing and store distribution.
On a Personal Note:
Off the clock, Helen enjoys wilderness camping, hiking, reading, cooking/baking, video games and spending time with her two dogs and cat.