Feed My Starving Children

I led digital content strategy for $70M global nonprofit Feed My Starving Children, including the blog, where I more than doubled monthly page views within my first year (112 percent growth). This project — co-led with a cross-functional partner — was part of a strategy to message the organization's sustainable development initiatives and was FMSC’s first immersive multimedia long-form narrative. It won a Gold MarCom award and was featured in our annual report, which was the recipient of a Platinum MarCom award.

(photo by Katie Koranda)

Medtronic

In my time on Medtronic’s Content & Creative team, I led enterprise storytelling efforts for Diabetes, ID&E, Medtronic LABS, the Medtronic Foundation, and global regions partners and helped shape enterprise-wide “always-on” content strategy for the Content & Creative team's overall storytelling and editorial initiatives

This story showcases the results of a partnership strategy I created, as well as how I embraced a vision of “dimensionalizing” storytelling — each story was part of a campaign that spanned channels and content types.

(photo by Katie Koranda)

Best Buy

At Best Buy, I created and executed strategic communication plans and storytelling that drove employee awareness and engagement, most notably for Best Buy’s racial equity commitments, first Teen Tech Center store donation campaign, and the company’s first employee general assistance fund.

(photo by Katie Koranda)

Medtronic LABS

Medtronic LABS is a health systems innovator that develops community-based, tech-enabled solutions for underserved patients, families, and communities across the world. In my time as head of marketing and communications, I managed internal and external marketing and communications, including social media strategy and execution and storytelling and acted as the liaison with Medtronic corporate marketing and communications teams.

(photo by Katie Koranda)

AustinTalks

In graduate school, I reported and wrote hyperlocal news for the Austin neighborhood in Chicago and was honored to be the recipient of the Studs Terkel Community Media Scholarship for excellence in covering and reflecting Chicago’s diverse communities. I was also nominated with the AustinTalks team for a Peter Lisagor Award. (stock photo courtesy unsplash)

WBEZ

In my time at WBEZ, I wrote and voiced short newscast reports; pitched, reported, and wrote arts and culture features on multiple platforms; and produced narrated and non-narrated features. I field-produced and produced segments for the arts and culture desk, including the StoryCorps and Curious City franchises. (stock photo courtesy unsplash)

Saint Paul Pioneer Press

I spent a year as a reporter for the St. Paul Pioneer Press. I wrote close to 400 breaking news and enterprise stories and covered courts for two counties, garnering 1.3 million page views. I wrote and contributed to 30 A1 stories, but this is among my favorite and most meaningful pieces (even though I covered the Winter Carnival and Treasure Hunt!) (stock photo courtesy unsplash)

I envisioned the Hope is Greater integrated marketing campaign after three years at a food relief nonprofit. The conditions of the world meant that hunger wasn’t going away any time soon. Our donors and volunteers surely felt this hearing message after message of despair. Research shows that people are less likely to take action when faced with messages of pity. The Hope is Greater campaign was built on data that reward emotions are more effective at moving people to meaningful and long-term action.

I created the storyboard for the campaign launch video (linked to in blog post below). The campaign included a series of blogs highlighting beneficiary stories of hope being greater than the conditions they were facing. We also threaded the campaign through our volunteer packing sites, direct mail, social media, annual report, and marketing emails.

Open Book Communications

Part of a creative team at Open Book Communications that developed a campaign strategy of "Make Visible" to reinforce that purchasing a building is about so much more than brick and mortar. It's an opportunity to make visible in very real ways movements of hospitality, mercy, and service—for the good of the whole city. We had the privilege of crafting the story, brand, campaign materials, and website to invite their congregation and broader community into this vision.

Sojourners Magazine

As a freelance writer and photographer, I wrote about and photographed the first memorial for sexual assault survivors in the U.S. for a monthly progressive magazine that focuses on the intersection of faith, politics, and culture, particularly issues of social justice, environmental stewardship, and peacemaking.

(photo by Katie Koranda)

Explore Minnesota

As a freelance writer and photographer, I wrote a hybrid personal essay and how-to article for beginning birders for the official tourism office for the State of Minnesota.

(photo by Katie Koranda)