News

ROKK Solutions welcomes Annie Clark to our leadership team as Senior Vice President.

Annie spent more than a decade working on Capitol Hill. Most recently, she was the Communications Director for Senator Susan Collins (R–ME) and the Senate Appropriations Committee. Annie also served as the Campaign Communications Director for Senator Collins’ 2020 reelection bid.

“We are excited that Annie Clark is joining our growing team of seasoned communicators,” said Co-Founder and Partner Ron Bonjean. “Her extensive experience on Capitol Hill along with deep relationships with the media and extensive crisis management insights will be invaluable assets to assist our clients with their communications goals.

“Annie spent years as a top communications expert on Capitol Hill,” said Partner Kristen Hawn. “Her expertise and keen understanding of how to shape a narrative will help our clients navigate the ever-evolving political landscape.”

“Annie has made her mark on Capitol Hill, where she is universally known as a seasoned communicator and valued advisor to one of the most powerful senators in the Republican Party. More importantly, she understands the bipartisan culture we have built here and will contribute greatly to it,” said Co-Founder and Partner Rodell Mollineau. “I look forward to Annie utilizing her valuable experience for a wide array of clients as they navigate the new power dynamics in Washington D.C.”

“I’ve spent the last ten years in the center of some of the most intense political battles, and I’ve learned what it takes to win – especially when the odds are stacked against you,” said Annie Clark. “Ron, Rodell and Kristen have assembled an exceptional team at ROKK, and I’m excited to help our clients win debates, tell their stories, and successfully navigate crises in today’s rapidly changing media environment.”

In 2024, The Hill named Annie one of 25 staffers who make Capitol Hill run. The newspaper noted that Annie is “tough when she clashes with a reporter, but she’s accessible, always armed with the facts, and always out in front of developing stories…She’s been battle-tested in a way that few have been on Capitol Hill.”

Prior to her nearly ten years with Senator Collins, Annie served as the Communications Director for Congressman Mike Turner (R-OH) and the Director of TV and Radio at the National Republican Congressional Committee (NRCC). Originally from Leawood, Kansas, Annie is a graduate of Miami University in Oxford, OH.

ROKK Solutions announced today that seasoned former Disney public affairs strategist Kristin Nolt Wingard has joined the firm as a Senior Advisor.

With more than 30 years of high-level experience advising CEOs and elected officials in Washington, DC and California, developing new market entry strategies, positioning companies and managing issues, Kristin is based in California representing ROKK with clients who have business interests on the West Coast and on a national level. 

“Kristin is a battle-tested strategic advisor, and a great friend,” said Co-Founder and Partner Ron Bonjean. “She has held demanding leadership roles in both the public and private sectors and brings to ROKK a breadth and depth of experience that will greatly benefit our clients.”

“We are so excited to have Kristin join our team,” said Partner Kristen Hawn.  “She understands the intersection of business, policy, and politics, and how effective public affairs and communications strategies can engage stakeholders, win debates, protect brands and enhance reputations.” 

As founder and president of her own consultancy, Kristin provides C-suite executives and companies with expertise on strategic communications, issues/reputation management, executive and company positioning and leadership consulting

Before starting her own company five years ago, Kristin spent 14 years in top public affairs and communications roles at The Walt Disney Company. She ran worldwide public affairs and communications for Walt Disney Parks and Resorts during one of its largest periods of growth and expansion, and was a trusted advisor to two different chairmen. Kristin led external communications, public relations, media events, internal communications, executive communications, government and industry relations, community relations and corporate citizenship, managing a team of more than 500 people spanning six locations around the globe. 

While at Disney, she also devised multi-year strategies that positioned brands, enhanced the company’s reputation on a national and global scale and drove sustainable business growth. Kristin also has mitigated complex, high-profile issues and crises — often managing several simultaneously around the world. Additionally, she spent eight years working on Shanghai Disney Resort, from the entry into mainland China and groundbreaking to the grand opening and first year of operations. 

Prior to her promotion to the global Disney role, Kristin was SVP, Public Affairs for the Disneyland Resort for six years. She has served on the boards and executive committees of non-profit, industry and government organizations. 

Before being recruited to Disney, she spent 12 years in senior roles on and off Capitol Hill. Kristin was head of marketing, communications and media relations at the National Restaurant Association and was a legislative assistant, press secretary and campaign manager for former Delaware Governor and U.S. Congressman Mike Castle, working in both his gubernatorial and congressional offices.

ROKK Solutions sponsored this session entitled, “Pendulum Whiplash — How Companies Maneuver through Political Uncertainty,” at PRWeek’s Crisis Comms day-long conference in Washington, D.C. in April 2024.

The panel featured Lisa Hanna of Delta Air Lines, Ron Bonjean of ROKK Solutions and Steve Rochlin of IMPACT ROI, and was moderated by Steve Clemons of Semafor.

During the lively conversation, panelists talked about how the charged political environment, lack of certainty from government institutions and ever-changing societal expectations have eroded the boundaries between corporate communications and public affairs. To help companies better navigate issues, ROKK Solutions developed a service called STAR – Social Threat Analysis & Response). 
Learn more about STAR and read the full panel recap (page 13) from PRWeek.

Communicators are looking at the rise of AI as a massive opportunity for the field, but they are also factoring in the potential risks the technology could bring for corporate reputation and political communication in a high-stakes election year.

Why it matters: Companies are working on crafting guidelines for disclosing AI use as well as thinking on how to respond to potential comms risks and crises involving AI, high-level communicators told Axios’ Eleanor Hawkins and Nathan Bomey at an Expert Voices roundtable discussion event.

Learn more about the exclusive luncheon of industry leaders that was sponsored by ROKK Solutions, WE Communications and Salesforce.

WE Communications has partnered with ROKK Solutions to form the WE ROKK AI service. The offering marries WE’s technology expertise with ROKK’s policy communications savvy.

Rodell Mollineau, co-founder and partner at ROKK Solutions, said the partnership with WE will help clients understand how to navigate AI policy.

Read the full article on the joint offering, WE ROKK AI with ROKK Solutions and WE Communications, in O’Dwyer’s.

WE and ROKK Solutions, a bipartisan public affairs agency, have partnered to help clients advocate for AI policy and communicate transparently about responsible AI use. 

The independent agencies have launched a service offering, WE ROKK AI, which is designed to marry WE’s technology expertise with ROKK Solutions’ experience in policy communications and the legislative landscape. According to a statement from both firms, WE ROKK AI will focus on five core areas: landscape analysis, message development, strategic communications, internal communications and crisis mitigation.

Read the full article on the joint offering, WE ROKK AI with ROKK Solutions and WE Communications, in PRWeek.

WE Communications and ROKK Solutions are rolling out a joint offering, called WE ROKK AI, designed to help organizations navigate AI policy. The new offering leverages WE’s expertise in technology and ROKK’s legislative expertise to provide clients guidance around the legal and policy complexities of AI to determine how the technology best fits into their operations.

“Artificial intelligence is reshaping the way we live, work and interact with information. As the technology advances, no industry will avoid its still unknown benefits and risks — or be immune to the policies that govern them,” said ROKK co-founder and partner Rodell Mollineau. “It’s why ROKK has partnered with the technology experts from WE Communications to help clients understand how to navigate AI policy.”

Read the full article on the joint offering, WE ROKK AI with ROKK Solutions and WE Communications, in PRovoke.

ROKK Solutions is proud to announce that our Co-Founder and Partner Rodell Mollineau has been elected to the PR Council’s Board of Directors for a three-year term. He joins alongside leaders who represent agencies of all sizes, geographies and specialities. 

The PR Council is the only association dedicated to supporting agencies with a core competency in earned media. Through a combination of convening, advising and learning opportunities, the PR Council aims to help Members—the leaders of 150 of US and Canada’s premier global, mid-size, regional and specialty firms—work smarter to build more valuable agencies.

Read the full press release about Rodell Mollineau joining PR Council’s Board of Directors.  

ROKK Solutions has named Washington Post veteran Ashley Carpenter EVP, effective February 1.

Joining the agency’s executive leadership team, Carpenter will work across client, business and marketing as a client counselor, providing high-level advice on platforms and emerging tech, cultivating new business opportunities and developing and launching new products, services and technologies, according to a ROKK Solutions statement.

Read the full article from PRWeek here.

Kristen Smith, who was senior VP & head of health policy communications at Edelman Global Advisory, has joined ROKK Solutions as a senior VP.

At ROKK, Smith will counsel clients as they develop targeted campaigns to influence policy discussion and advance their PA and strategic communications initiatives. Read firsthand at O’Dwyers here.