StarKist Co.
Company: StarKist Co., Pittsburgh, PA U.S.A.
Entry Submitted By: Coburn Communications
Company Description: A seasoned and well-respected PR veteran, with 15 year experience under her belt, Melissa Murphy is currently the Senior VP of Corporate Affairs at StarKist Co., Melissa stands out as one of the very few female executives in the seafood industry.
Nomination Category: Individual Categories
Nomination Sub Category: Best Executive – Non-Services Businesses – More Than 2,500 Employees
Nomination Title: Melissa Murphy, Senior Vice President of Corporate Affairs
Describe for the judges the activities and accomplishments of the nominated executive during the eligibility period (up to 500 words):
A seasoned and well-respected PR veteran, with 15 year experience under her belt,
Melissa Murphy is currently the Senior VP of Corporate Affairs at StarKist Co.;
Melissa stands out as one of the very few female executives in the seafood
industry. In June 2008, following Del Monte’s divestiture of StarKist, Melissa was
tapped to help lead StarKist from a domestic tuna manufacturer to a global seafood
brand. Melissa has spearheaded critical milestones for the new StarKist Co.,
essentially building the company from the ground up — from hiring a team of high-
caliber professionals to building StarKist buzz among consumers and the
community.
In fact, Melissa recently culminated a multi-million dollar office build-out and
relocation project to accommodate the growing space needs of the company’s
headquarters in Pittsburgh, on-time and under budget. True to Melissa’s creative
and energetic style, she even managed to brand the new office with StarKist
touches – from Charlie the Tuna in the café to the words of our mission and vision
on our StarKist-blue walls. While some may think of them as a secondary priority,
Melissa understands that they make all the difference in inspiring StarKist
employees every day. This is just one example of how she goes above and
beyond for the benefit of those around her.
Her efforts also include reviving the StarKist brand, both internally for employees
through human resources and internal communications and externally for a variety
of stakeholders, including the community, media, government and industry.
Notably, she has advocated the company’s beliefs on seafood sustainability, by
representing StarKist in the newly founded International Seafood Sustainability
Foundation, an effort that has taken her across the world for multi-national
meetings among the leading players in the global seafood industry.
From 2009-2010, Melissa spearheaded two highly visible consumer
communications campaigns, exceeding positive media impression goals by 85%,
and teaming up with celebrities including TV personality and notable foodie Ted
Allen and Food Network star Sandra Lee, evidence that you don’t have to live in
New York or Los Angeles to do PR work that has national and international impact.
Of course, Melissa never leaves her energy and drive at the office – it infuses her
community work, too. Through her work with the Pittsburgh Zoo, Animal Friends
and Urban Impact, Melissa is a living example of importance of giving back. She
serves on the Board of Directors of the Pittsburgh Zoo & PPG Aquarium, recently
chairing the sponsorship committee of the highly successful black-tie event, “The
Wildest Gala of 2010," a significant fundraiser for the zoo. Through her
efforts, the
zoo raised nearly $500,000 in individual donations and corporate sponsorships,
including 26 new corporate sponsors brought in under her direction, representing
nearly 40% of the total dollars raised at the event—during a down economy, no
less.
List the URLs (web addresses) of any online news stories, press releases, or other documents that you would like the judges to see that support your entry. IMPORTANT: List each URL on a separate line, begin each URL with http://, and enclose each URL in square brackets. For example, [http://www.yourcompany.com/pressrelease.html]:
http://starkist.com/
http://www.facebook.com/pages/StarKist/84049934974?ref=ts
http://twitter.com/starkistcharlie
http://starkist.com/about-starkist/management-team
http://starkist.com/about-starkist/media
Provide a brief biography of the nominated executive (up to 100 words):
2008 – Present: Senior Vice President of Corporate Affairs for StarKist Co., and
Corporate Secretary for the Board of Directors
2003 –2008: VP of Corporate Communications for Del Monte Foods
1995 –2003: VP and Group Leader of Ketchum Public Relations
Bachelor of Arts in English Writing, with minors in Business, Communication and
English Literature from the University of Pittsburgh
Melissa has lent her time and expertise on:
• Animal Friends Board of Directors
• Fundraising for the annual Shady Side Academy gala committee
• Public Relations Society of America
• Founding member of the International Seafood Sustainability Foundation