The Stevens Group has been presenting the PR Masters Series Podcast for two years now.  This series is part of the ongoing partnership between The Stevens Group and CommPRO to bring to PR, digital/interactive and marketing communications agencies the wisdom of those who have reached the top of the PR profession.  Today’s special guest is Barbara Way Hunter, Founder of Hunter Public Relations.

Barbara Way Hunter was founder of Hunter Public Relations, a New York firm, from March 1989 to December 2000.  She is now retired, but the firm continues as Hunter:, currently with more than 200 staff members.

Ms. Hunter was formerly president of Dudley-Anderson-Yutzy, one of the earliest PR firms, founded in 1908.  She joined D-A-Y as an account executive in February 1956 after earlier experience as as a staff member of Food Field Reporter, a trade publication for the food industry, publicist for Sealtest products at  National Dairy Products Corp. and account executive at Sally Dickson Associates. In 1969, after two of D-A-Y’s partners died, Ms. Hunter and her sister, Jean Schoonover, bought out the remaining partner and grew the business 500% in the next 12 years. When D-A-Y was acquired by the advertising agency, Ogilvy & Mather, in 1983, she became vice-chairman of its public relations department.

She left O&M at the end of 1988 and, joined by two partners, formed Hunter MacKenzie Cooper in March 1989. McIlhenny Company, maker of Tabasco Sauce, was its first client. When the two partners departed, she continued the firm as Hunter Public Relations until 2000 when she sold it to five of her top staff members

Ms Hunter. Graduated from the College of Arts & Sciences at Cornell University in 1949.  While there she was women’s editor of the Cornell Daily Sun, president of her sorority (Kappa Kappa Gamma), and was elected to Mortar Board, a senior honorary society. A trustee of the university from 1980 to 1985, she also served on the advisory council of the College of Agriculture and Life Sciences :,d is a lifetime member of the Cornell Council.  For five years she was president of her alumni class.  She is a former director of the YMCA of Greater New York.  After retirement and relocation to Walpole, NH, from 2004 to 2008 she served as president of the Point O’Woods Association, a community on Fire Island, NY, and president of the Walpole Historical Society.

Ms. Hunter was the 1984 national president of the Public Relations Society of America and prior to that president of the New York Chapter. She is a member of the PRSA College of Fellows and is a former trustee of The Institute for Public Relations Research and Education.  She is the recipient of numerous presidential citations from the Society, the John Hill award from the New York Chapter and the 1993 Gold Anvil from the national society.  She was chairman of the 1989 PRSA national conference in Dallas,  and founded the PRSA Food and Beverage Section in 1992, She served on the boards of The Advertising Women of New York and the Women Executives in Public Relations.

Ms. Hunter received the Matrix Award from the New York Women in Communications in 1980, the Entrepreneurial Woman Award from the Women Business Owners of New York in 1981, and the national Headliner Award from Women in Communications in 1984,   She was a charter member of the Committee of 200 and is a member of the YMCA Academy of Women Achievers.  In 1976 Business Week named her as one of the 100 outstanding women in business.

Ms. Hunter was born in Westport, New York, on July 14, 1927, the daughter of Dr. Walter and Hilda Way.  She attended The Westport Central School and was valedictorian of her graduating class in 1945. After graduation from Cornell, she moved to Manhattan where she lived for the next 50 years.  In 1953 she married Austin Hunter, and they subsequently had two daughters, Kimberley and Victoria. Their marriage lasted 60 years.

The Stevens Group has been presenting the PR Masters Series Podcast for two years now.  This series is part of the ongoing partnership between The Stevens Group and CommPRO to bring to PR, digital/interactive and marketing communications agencies the wisdom of those who have reached the top of the PR profession.  Today’s special guest is Grace Leong, CEO & Partner, HUNTER.

Grace Leong is a passionate advocate for the modern practice of integrated marketing communications.  Recently named a “Champion of PR” by PRWeek magazine, Grace elevates the role of PR in the marketing mix among Hunter’s best in class clients in consumer products and services by infusing programs with new technologies, resources and solutions that drive business results.

In a career spanning 30 more than years, Grace has conceived and led of dozens award winning communications programs and initiatives for Fortune 100 consumer products companies including 3M, Johnson & Johnson, Church & Dwight and Pompeian. Classically educated and credentialed as both a public relations professional and marketer, Grace embraces her role as the female lead of a diverse communications consultancy which is driven by creativity, exceptional client service and a dedication to achieving measurable business results.

Inspired by a foundation in earned media, Grace has driven the evolution of HUNTER into new services, new territories, and new industries through her ability to recognize the sweet spot between her client’s evolving communications needs and staff’s talents, and funneling investment into their development, while delivering best in class results for the clients that partner with Hunter.  

Not a fan of the spotlight herself, Grace believes doing great work every day sets the best leadership example, and is most often found in the “brainstorm room” driving the next big idea or and at the IMC table contributing best-in-class PR strategy.  Her skills as a communications expert come in handy at home as well, as the mother of four young adults who enjoying challenging their parents with their own academic and athletic objectives.

An accredited member of the Public Relations Society of America (PRSA) and the Arthur W. Page Society, Grace has served the public relations and marketing industry in numerous leadership positions. In 2016, she was awarded the PRSA-NY John W. Hill Award for lifetime achievement in public relations. Grace earned a BA from the University of Delaware and an MBA from Rutgers University. She was named the Delaware’s outstanding alumni in 2013 and inducted in to the University’s Alumni Hall of Fame in 2016 for lifetime professional achievement and service to the Blue Hen Community.

The Stevens Group has been presenting the PR Masters Series Podcast for two years now.  This series is part of the ongoing partnership between The Stevens Group and CommPRO to bring to PR, digital/interactive and marketing communications agencies the wisdom of those who have reached the top of the PR profession.  Today’s special guest is Jim Weiss, Chairman + Founder, Real Chemistry.

When Art Stevens headed LobsenzStevens, a top independent New York PR agency in the nineties, his firm selected an up and coming young man as an intern.  That young man was Jim Weiss.  Jim was assigned to work on a healthcare account and that started his career in healthcare.  The rest is history.

Jim Weiss is the Chairman and Founder of Real Chemistry, a global health innovation company that uses real-world data, proprietary technologies and analytical insights to solve the health care industry’s most significant challenges. He also serves as an Executive Advisor to New Mountain Capital, Real Chemistry’s investment partner. 

Jim evolved Real Chemistry from a one-person consultancy to a team of 1,800+ people who partner with clients at the highest levels of organizational decision-making. A pioneer in the application of analytics, data and precision targeting, Jim learned early in his career to follow the data to get to the right outcome. 

He is also passionate about improving diversity, inclusion and health equity to make the world a healthier place for all.

The Stevens Group has been presenting the PR Masters Series Podcast for two years now. This series is part of the ongoing partnership between The Stevens Group and CommPRO to bring to PR, digital/interactive and marketing communications agencies the wisdom of those who have reached the top of the PR profession. 

Today’s special guest is John D. (Jack) Bergen Managing Partner, The Bergen Partnership.

The Stevens Group has been presenting the PR Masters Series Podcast for two years now. This series is part of the ongoing partnership between The Stevens Group and CommPRO to bring to PR, digital/interactive and marketing communications agencies the wisdom of those who have reached the top of the PR profession. 

Today’s special guest is Margery Kraus, Founder & Executive Chairman, APCO Worldwide. Ms. Kraus has deep expertise in providing strategic counsel on issue based communication, crisis management, market entry, and corporate  reputation across diverse industry groups. The range of her experience is  reflected in APCO’s industry practice groups. In addition, she pioneered  one of the industry’s earliest practices in corporate responsibility and the  development of public/private partnerships. Ms. Kraus is a true PR master and business pioneer.

The Stevens Group has been presenting the PR Masters Series Podcast for two years now. This series is part of the ongoing partnership between The Stevens Group and CommPRO to bring to PR, digital/interactive and marketing communications agencies the wisdom of those who have reached the top of the PR profession. 

Today’s special guest is Mark Weiner, Chief Insights Officer at PublicRelay.

The Stevens Group has been presenting the PR Masters Series Podcast for almost two years now. This series is part of the ongoing partnership between The Stevens Group and CommPRO to bring to PR, digital/interactive and marketing communications agencies the wisdom of those who have reached the top of the PR profession. 

Today’s special guest is Brad MacAfee, Founder & CEO, Mission + Cause.