Glynn Young Communications, LLC (2015 to date)
- Independent communications and social media consulting.
- Contributing editor, Tweetspeak Poetry.
Director, Online Strategy & Communications, Monsanto Company (2009-2015)
- Responsible for the corporate social media channels (Facebook, YouTube, Twitter, corporate blog), and coordination of online media across several teams.
- Developed a central team for communications content development across several media and channels (web site, intranet, social media, email communications).
- Designed and implemented an online issues management strategy for Monsanto’s participation in a U.S. Department of Agriculture/Department of Justice workshop in Des Moines, Iowa, in March 2010, addressing competition in the seed industry. Strategy including “livetweeting” the event on Twitter, monitoring and responding to several social media streams, Facebook postings, and relaying blog, Twitter and media reports back to the team at the workshop.
- Created and implemented the corporate communications strategy for a $1 million donation to relief efforts in the Horn of Africa, resulting in an additional $250,000 in donations.
- Managed the corporate archives via a team at Washington University in Louis.
- Retired May 2015.
Director, Employee & Electronic Communications, Monsanto Company (2007-2009)
- Responsible for corporate internal communications (intranet), news and information research, web communications (monsanto.com), social media and issues management. Team won 20 awards for internal communications, intranet, online news publication and corporate web site.
- Led the launch of Monsanto’s involvement in social media, including an issues blog, Facebook, Twitter, YouTube channel, and an online external news publication. Monsanto’s efforts with social media were recognized in an industry blog, the St. Louis Business Journal and the St. Louis Post-Dispatch.
Director, Environmental Communications, Monsanto Company (2004-2007)
- Responsibilities: Communication strategies and tactics for a host of corporate, environmental, and litigation issues associated with the bankruptcy of another company for which Monsanto holds liability. Duties included media relations, community relations, environmental communications, and interim speechwriter for the CEO.
Executive Director of Communications, St. Louis Public Schools (2003-2004)
- Directed internal and external communication programs for this urban school district during a massive reorganization designed and overseen by an outside management turnaround firm. Duties included media relations, crisis communication (daily), employee communications and speechwriting.
Principal, GlynnYoung Communications, LLC (2000 to 2003)
- Served a wide array of clients in the chemical, agricultural, mining, insurance and manufacturing industries for speechwriting, crises communications, counnity outreach and general public relations.
Director, Employee and Executive Communications – Solutia Inc. (1997 to 2000)
- For this newly independent company (formerly the chemical businesses of Monsanto Company), developed a comprehensive internal communications plan to help launch the company; and directed the creation of the new company’s e-mail newsletter, employee newspaper and worldwide web site.
Director, Executive Communications – Monsanto Company (1990-1997)
- Responsible for internal communications, including e-mail newsletter and four-color magazine; executive speechwriting; process redesign communications; worldwide web site; shared services communications; corporate archives and photo/film library.
Public Affairs Director – Monsanto Chemical Company (1987-1990)
- Responsible for crisis communications for the business unit’s 21 chemical manufacturing facilities, and for environmental communications; executive speechwriting; state government relations; plant community relations; crisis communications.
Manager, Public Relations – Monsanto Agricultural Company (1983-1987)
- Managed all media relations and product defense for Monsanto’s herbicide businesses in the U.S. and Canada, including a sustained, three-year effort defending registration of a $400 million product. Responsible for media relations; industry and trade association relations; employee communications; and executive speechwriting.
Manager, Public Relations – Monsanto Company (1980-1983)
- Responsible for executive speechwriting; briefing papers; quarterly financial reports.
Public Relations Representative – Monsanto Industrial Chemicals Company (1978-1980)
- Responsible for crisis communications; product/marketing communications; executive speechwriting.
Writer/Senior Writer – Shell Oil Company (1974-1978)
- Responsible for executive speeches; employee newspaper; communications research project for corporate defense against proposals to “break up Big Oil.”
Copy Editor – Beaumont, Texas Enterprise (1973-1974)
- Copy editor for three editions of a daily newspaper.
Education, Awards, Honors, Memberships
B.A. in Journalism – Louisiana State University, 1973
Master of Liberal Arts – Washington University in St. Louis, 1988
Nine national awards for speechwriting; two PRSA Silver Anvil Awards; three Community Relations Bellringer Awards; four Mercury Awards.
Member of PRSA; former member of the Board of Directors of PRSA, St. Louis; past Board member of the National Association of Corporate Speaker Activities; past Board member of the World Bird Sanctuary.
Named to the PRSA College of Fellows, Class of 2005.
Named to the St. Louis Media Hall of Fame for Advertising and Public Relations, 2009.
Author of the novel Dancing Priest (2011) and the sequel A Light Shining (2012), and the non-fiction book Poetry at Work (2013).