Greg Brooks

Current

Principal at West Third Group

Past

Vice President at Jane Mobley Associates
Vice President, Communications and Information Services at Illinois Manufacturers' Association
Marketing Projects Manager at Peter Kiewit Son's, Inc.

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Education

California State Polytechnic University-Pomona

Recommended

14 people have recommended Greg

Connections

413 connections

Industry

Public Relations and Communications

Websites

Engage, my blog

Greg Brooks’s Summary

THE SHORT VERSION
Former journalist who went into policy and issues PR nearly 20 years ago after a pretty good run in various editorial slots.

WEST THIRD GROUP
My company, West Third Group delivers solutions in two major practice areas:

* WTG provides managed editorial solutions for newspapers (typically in the special-sections area) and corporate clients. These services range from outsourced layout and production to turnkey department management covering all content and operations for multiple sections/publications. Our work in this area is priced on a "utility model," with fixed, per-page rates that let clients adjust their budgets in real time as page counts rise and fall.

* WTG creates strategic marketing plans and campaigns for clients in the private and public sector, with particular emphasis on transportation and planning, air and water quality, public involvement and business-to-business marketing.

At various times, I've helped helped re-engineer marketing operations in turnaround companies, developed communications for major pro-business advocacy organizations and assisted clients/employers in the manufacturing, non-profit, transportation, infrastructure and development arenas.

SELECT PROJECTS
* Turnkey special sections outsourcing for The Orange County Register and Colorado Springs Gazette, among other publications.

* Communications audits and plans for a several Metropolitan Planning Organizations.

* Development of a strategic marketing plan for a public-sector agency that wanted to sell consulting services to both private and public clients.

* On-call marketing strategy and support for a $100 million manufacturer in the material-handling industry.

* Development of a public participation process that was the most successful effort of that type ever undertaken by the client, a public agency.

* Development of a $3 million outreach and PR effort for what was, at the time, the largest design-build project in the country.

Greg Brooks’s Specialties:

Outsourcing, newspapers, editing, publication management, marketing, public relations, public affairs, public involvement, media relations, strategic message development, editorial product development, business development, Web analysis/architecture.

Greg Brooks’s Experience

Principal

West Third Group

(Privately Held; 1-10 employees; Public Relations and Communications industry)

February 2001 — Present (8 years 6 months)

WTG provides counsel, strategies and solutions for those who have to engage the policymakers, the public or key customer segments. Our primary focus is in issues-based (rather than product-based), marketing and communications, with practice areas in public involvement, community relations, decisonmaking analysis and qualitative/quantitative research.
Vice President

Jane Mobley Associates

(Privately Held; 11-50 employees; Public Relations and Communications industry)

April 2001 — January 2004 (2 years 10 months)

Member of management team at top-5 agency in the Kansas City market. JMA has national practices in public involvement, public information and community relations, primarily in the areas of public infrastructure and planning. Focus was divided between project management/execution and business development.
Vice President, Communications and Information Services

Illinois Manufacturers' Association

(Non-Profit; 11-50 employees; Public Relations and Communications industry)

September 1998 — September 2000 (2 years 1 month)

Corporate officer responsible for communicating the mission and programs of Illinois' leading pro-business organization to members, media and legislators. Staff of two, annual budget of $600,000. Extensive contact with media; repositioned/redesigned publications won more than 20 awards and boosted member involvement.

Typical project: Econometric model allowing members to calculate -- and communicate to elected officials -- the real economic impact of their business in the community. Also created policy analyses related to key IMA initiatives.

Key accomplishments: Reduced overall outreach budget by one-third while boosting the number of communications/outreach products. Oversaw redesign and redeployment of Web site with more than 1,000 pages of information. Rolled out Illinois' most successful affinity program for selling electricity in a newly deregulated market.
Marketing Projects Manager

Peter Kiewit Son's, Inc.

(Privately Held; 5001-10,000 employees; Construction industry)

March 1997 — September 1998 (1 year 7 months)