At Walker Sands, building a strong company culture is a cornerstone of our organization. Our commitment to evolving and nurturing the employee experience ensures that our team can best support our clients’ needs and foster a vibrant community, whether in our offices in Chicago, Seattle and Boston or among our remote employees.
I’m excited to share that Hailey Driscoll is now leading our Boston office as Managing Director. As our Boston presence continues to expand, Hailey’s people-first leadership and passion for collaboration will be instrumental in guiding our Boston-based team. In addition to her new role, Hailey will continue to serve as Vice President, PR, where she leads innovative PR and communications programs, supporting a range of technology companies from ideation to execution.
I caught up with Hailey to chat about her new role and her vision for Walker Sands’ Boston office.
You currently hold two leadership roles: VP of PR and Managing Director of our Boston office. How would you describe your leadership style? Does your approach differ between these two positions?
“I’m lucky to be able to split my time between working with our talented PR teams on client programs and leading initiatives in our Boston office. While my responsibilities differ across these roles, there’s one constant throughline: the importance of leading through connection and collaboration.
As a leader, it’s incredibly important to me to be transparent, empowering and inclusive. This means arming my teams with the information and support that they need to be successful, while upholding the mindset that good ideas can come from anyone, regardless of their role, department or tenure. We do our best work when we collaborate as a group, so whether I’m approaching a PR campaign, or conceptualizing new ways to engage our team in Boston, I’m always seeking ideas and collaboration from the amazing teams that I work with.
I also take my role as a team cheerleader seriously! It’s validating to see team members try new things, succeed and work together to ‘Find the Fun’, as we say at Walker Sands – whether that’s a fun team bonding event outside the office, or an exciting client campaign that we’re all proud to be a part of. We’ve had a fast start to 2024 with a lot to be proud of, and I know we’re just getting started.”
Boston is a hub for innovation across many industries like AI, cybersecurity and healthcare. How do you envision getting more involved in the Boston community, at both a personal and a team level?
“Boston is one of the fastest growing markets for tech and healthcare – the amount of innovation happening in our backyard is inspiring and exciting. We’re lucky to have many clients who are local to Boston as well. It’s a great opportunity for us to network with industry leaders and advance our team’s industry expertise.
Specifically, I’m excited for our team members to attend more local events that shine a light on the future of the industries we’re working in, day in and day out. We also have a great office space for hosting, and I hope to continue to host our clients and partners in Boston for brainstorming sessions and opportunities for bonding.
On a personal level, I relish any opportunity to meet with clients or people in my network for drinks or coffee. I’ve met some really interesting leaders in tech and VC through casual connections, that oftentimes lead to really interesting opportunities to collaborate or knowledge-share. That will continue to be a priority for me personally.”
Looking ahead, what do you see as the biggest opportunities for our Boston office in the next few years?
“In addition to being a hub for innovation, Boston is also home to some of the top universities and communications programs in the country. So, building up our connection to the next generation of marketing leaders is a big opportunity for us. We’ve already made connections with local comms schools and student groups, attending career fairs and other events as a way to meet prospective employees and provide mentorship to students. I’ve been so impressed and inspired by the up-and-coming talent in our industry. Looking ahead, we’re hoping to continue to connect with more universities, professors and students, and perhaps even host some student groups in our office during the next academic year. I was lucky enough to have a lot of mentors throughout my career, so it’s important to me to continue to give back in this way – and to hopefully find some talented future Walker Sandsians along the way!”
What motivates you personally as a leader, and how do you bring this motivation into your work with the team and the community?
“I’m highly motivated by opportunities to do things that have never been done before. In my client work, this translates to assessing and re-assessing the PR landscape and not being afraid to take new approaches to deliver the best results for clients. In my role as Managing Director, this means not relying on tried-and-true approaches to team engagement and culture; rather, building an employee experience that truly caters to the individuals on our team. Fueled by new team members that have joined Walker Sands Boston in the last several months, and emerging leaders in Boston, we’re creating new team traditions and bonding activities, and even reimagining our office space to make it as comfortable and productive as possible. Seeing these investments in the ‘never been done’ come to fruition over time, and make an impact on our clients and our teams, is what gets me out of bed every morning.”
What is your favorite part about working in our South End Boston location?
“Truthfully, my favorite part of working in our office is the people. We often get together for team lunches and events, but it’s the little moments day-to-day – the desk-side chats, impromptu catch ups, etc. – that make coming into the office a highlight of my week. The restaurants around us are a nice perk, too! Some of our team’s favorites include South End Buttery, Marseille, Atlantico and Barcelona. I recommend checking them out if you’re in the area!”
Congratulations to Hailey on her new role! Learn more about our Boston office here.
