Matt Kelly has spent his professional career in digital-first integrated communications, working with top brands like State Farm (client side), McDonald’s, Walgreens Discover Card, BP, Dow Chemical, SC Johnson, Conagra Brands, and others to improve their online reputation and advance business objectives. He has deep experience developing and executing paid, owned, earned and shared digital strategies for consumer and corporate/B2B clients. Matt believes putting the right tools, technologies, and talent in place can allow brands to participate and drive relevance that the old PR model cannot. In short: Matt’s a divergent thinker who applies it to places where it doesn’t usually live (like corporate communications).

On the client side at State Farm, Matt started the brand’s first social media team. This was a cross-functional effort to establish a center of excellence for all social media communications. Matt did this while finishing his Master’s degree in public relations, and leveraged the experience to write his thesis, “Fortune 500 Foray: How the Nation’s Largest Insurer Leverages Social Media,” which was published in PR Journal. He has been a presenter at the International Public Relations Research Conference multiple times, and has spoken at events from Meltwater Social Summit, Social Media Week, IABC, WOMMA and PRSA. He has also served as faculty for the Arthur W. Page Society. He also judges the annual Effie Awards, which rewards the top global marketing campaigns by effectiveness.

In his personal time, he’s a graduate of the improvisation and writing programs at Second City in Chicago, amateur hip-hop artist (Force Menace on Spotify), cat dad to Biggie, Marshall, and Eve, successful motorcycle-crosser of the Rohtang Pass in the Himalaya, failed Team USA Bobsled Combine participant (plagued with injuries, sore subject, can’t believe he wrote #MattKellyUSA on Instagram into this bio), and enjoys wearing Crocs with waist packs (proper term) in his spare time.