Shari’s path to PR is one of the more unconventional ones you’ll hear. After studying journalism and facing a tough post-recession job market, she enlisted in the military, eventually leaving the Air Force as a lieutenant after a decade of service. That journey through logistics, leadership, and an MBA in public relations shaped both the professional and the person she is today. Now an Account Manager at JMAC, Shari brings that breadth of experience to every account she touches, from mission-driven AI companies to the art of mentoring the next generation of PR professionals.
Tell us a bit about yourself and your background.
I have a pretty eclectic background. I started out as an undergraduate in journalism and an aspiring writer. But circumstances hit: we had the recession in 2008, and I graduated in 2009 into a market that wasn’t very journalist-friendly. After exhausting my job search, I decided to enlist in the military in 2011. I worked my way up through the ranks over 10 years, leaving the Air Force as a lieutenant in logistics. That experience taught me a lot about life and my personal and professional development.
Once I got out, I pursued my MBA in public relations—which I had been working toward in conjunction with my military service—and really dove into the operational side of what the business of PR looks like, going from journalist to PR pro. I’ve spent a good portion of the past 10 to 12 years in agency culture, including a role at a creative agency focused on experiential marketing. Seeing the full gamut of marketing within a business function was incredibly helpful, and it still informs how I think about branding and the broader communications ecosystem. But there was always something that brought me back to PR because writing is just in my nature. That’s what led me to where I am today at JMac.
What's involved in your role as an Account Executive on the JMAC team?
It’s very much a multiple-hats kind of position. At its core, the role is about enriching strategy (primarily external communications for our clients) and providing real value from a public relations standpoint. PR is a function that often gets overlooked in business, but more and more owners and marketing professionals are understanding how critical it is. So a big part of what I do day-to-day is strategically aligning myself with our agency clients to prove the value of PR through results.
There’s also a significant amount of project management involved. Managing multiple accounts, multiple campaigns, and multiple client goals creates a lot of complexity, so providing expert support in those situations is essential. And beyond the client work, I’m also focused on my own professional growth, specifically on mentoring and supporting people who are entering the workforce or the industry. That’s something I carry over from my military background. Being a manager at any level requires strong people skills to guide and support your team.
At the end of the day, agency life means you have to be nimble and flexible. Regardless of how much experience you have, you’re still rolling up your sleeves, pulling media lists, doing research. That team mentality is everything.
Do you have a favorite project or account that you've worked on?
One of the projects I feel most passionate about is Sleep.ai. I’ve always been drawn to mission-driven companies, and the way they’re using AI to improve people’s health really resonates with me. The way they run their operations, the depth of their data, the partnerships they’re building to bring that value to consumers: it’s all something I genuinely care about.
I feel like there’s a lot at stake in this work, and that makes it rewarding. What they’re doing now is going to shape what they’re able to do in the future, and the potential for their mission is enormous. I’m grateful to play even a small part in that.
What excites you most about the field of PR?
When I was in journalism school, there was all this talk about digital transformation being the death of traditional writing. Then in PR, it became about the threat of AI. But what excites me now is that, more than ever, the humanistic perspective is what matters most, especially when it comes to humanizing brands.
Any CEO can ask AI to write a press release or generate a social media strategy. Technically, almost anything can be produced that way. But a human writer brings something that AI simply can’t replicate: the depth of storytelling that actually shapes a brand. The true essence of branding has to come from a human expert who understands not just individual projects, but the full range of communications, from startups to large corporate comms. That’s where PR lives.
What excites me most is the power of the human brand voice cutting through all the AI noise. I think that’s only going to become more valuable over time.
What's one piece of advice you have for founders when it comes to creating their brand story and voice?
It’s a very intimate process. If you’re a founder trying to find your voice, you have to start by being truly introspective. People often think about starting a business in terms of profit—and yes, the goal is to make money—but shrink it down. The profits will come. What you need to protect and develop first is your brand identity.
Go back to the spark that started everything. What resonated with you? What’s your purpose, your passion? That very distilled moment that made you decide to become a founder—that’s where your brand voice lives. From there, you grow it out: what are your values, what’s your mission, what does that voice actually look like?
That original spark is infectious. It travels through the entire organization, no matter how fast or slow you grow, weaving itself into every function. As long as that founding principle is always present and applied, that’s how brands build legacies that last. Always go back to who you are and what that spark looked like, because it’s reflected in every decision you’ll make as a founder.
