Strategy Lab

On this podcast, we welcome our friend Rayna V. Farrell.  Rayna is Chief of Staff for Public Affairs at the Business Roundtable, where she manages day-to-day operations for the Public Affairs team. She also leads the organization’s overall strategy and execution on communication initiatives and oversees CEO engagement across the membership.  

During her time at the Roundtable, Farrell has led successful efforts and announcements on significant issues, most notably the association’s updated Statement on the Purpose of a Corporation and passage of the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act.  

Before joining Business Roundtable, Farrell worked for Mehlman Castagnetti. While with the firm, she helped clients develop winning strategies and build relationships with key policymakers in Congress, the White House, government agencies, and regulatory bodies. Farrell got her start in DC working on Capitol Hill for Congressman Cedric L. Richmond, who is now Joe Biden’s Director of Public Engagement at the White House.  

This episode we welcome Mike Bocian who is a founding partner at GBAO, one of the leading Democratic polling firms in the country. He has conducted quantitative or qualitative research in all 50 states and worked on many of the major issues of our time – health care, climate change, education, immigration, foreign policy, criminal justice reform, reproductive health care and others.

In addition to his work with candidates, Bocian research and strategic guidance to a variety of progressive organizations the House Majority PAC, Senate Majority PAC, NRDC, NEA, SEIU, AFSCME, ACLU, the Partnership for Safety and Justice, YouthFirst Initiative, the Center for American Progress, and the Center for Popular Democracy, among others.

Bocian is one of the leading experts on ballot initiative campaigns and has directed the polling for several successful ballot initiative campaigns on issues including taxes, education, renewable energy, the minimum wage, paid sick leave and workers’ rights.

Mike received his Master’s in Public Policy from Harvard’s Kennedy School of Government and his Bachelor of Arts from Princeton University. 

If you have guest ideas, as always, send them to [email protected] 

This episode we welcome Xochitl Hinojosa who currently serves as the Communications Director and Senior Advisor for the Democratic National Committee. A Texas native, Hinojosa attended the University of the Incarnate Word in San Antonio, TX. Her career began in Texas politics followed by working for Hillary Clinton’s 2008 presidential campaign in Iowa.  Hinojosa served as a Public Affairs Specialist at the Department of Justice in 2009. She then became the Communications Director for a Nevada U.S. Senate race and later served as the Communications Director for United States Senator Brian Schatz of Hawaii. 

Hinojosa then joined the Department of Labor, under then Secretary Tom Perez, as the Press Secretary, later serving as the Senior Managing Director. She worked on Hillary for America as the Director of Coalition Press before joining the Democratic National Committee as the Communications Director in April of 2017.

If you have guest ideas, as always, send them to [email protected] 

This episode we welcome Jalisa Washington-Price.  Jalisa is a seasoned Democratic operative and strategist.  She is currently Vice President of Political and Advocacy at iHeartMedia. Before joining iHeart, she served as deputy national political director and South Carolina state director for Kamala Harris’s presidential campaign. Prior to working on Harris’s campaign, Washington-Price worked in the office of diversity and as the chief of staff at the Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee and as a regional political director for Hillary Clinton’s 2016 presidential campaign. Today she’s a political advisor to the VP nominee, Kamala Harris, and mere weeks ago Fortune magazine named Jalisa to their 40 under 40 Leaders in Government and politics list. 

In this podcast, hosted by CR Wooters and Adam Weiss, we talk to Marshall Cohen the Politcal Director of the Democratic Governor's Association.

Marshall Cohen served as Deputy Political Director at the DGA the last two cycles, working on more than 19 governors races, including some of 2018’s biggest wins in Michigan, Nevada, Colorado, Connecticut, and Kansas. Before joining the DGA, Cohen managed federal and state races across the country, working in Maryland, Illinois, Wisconsin, and Nevada. Cohen has his master’s in Political Management and a bachelor’s in Political Communication from The George Washington University.

If you have ideas for guests, please email them to CR ([email protected]). 

In this podcast, hosted by CR Wooters and Adam Weiss, we talk to Tom Lopach the CEO of The Voter Participation Center and The Center for Voter Information.  

Tom Lopach is the the CEO of the Voter Participation Center and the Center for Voter Information.  The Voter Participation Center (VPC) is a non-profit, non-partisan organization founded in 2003 to help members of the Rising American Electorate register and vote. Since then, the organization has helped more than 5 million people register and cast ballots. Prior to this Tom served as Chief of Staff to Governor Steve Bullock and was Senior Advisor to Bullock for President campaign.  Tom also served as Chief of Staff to Montana Senator John Tester.

If you have ideas for guests, please email them to CR ([email protected]). 

In this podcast, hosted by CR Wooters and Adam Weiss, we talk to the President of Public Democracy Eric Sapp.

Eric co-founded Common Good Strategies, later the Eleison Group, which led outreach to faith and rural communities for top Democratic candidates in 2006 and 2008. He has since pioneered the use of new technologies in successful campaigns on issues ranging from international peacekeeping and human rights to grassroots efforts supporting veterans and protecting victims of terrorism. Through these efforts, his team developed one of the largest voter response databases and most sophisticated digital advertising platforms in the country, which in 2018 became a Public Benefit Corporation called Public Democracy.

Eric currently serves as a Nonresident Senior Fellow at the Atlantic Council focused on Data For Good, Data Trusts, Inclusive Growth, and Computational Propaganda.  Eric graduated from Davidson College and earned a Master of Divinity and a Master of Public Policy from Duke University. 

If you have ideas for guests, please email them to CR ([email protected]). 

In this podcast, hosted by CR Wooters and Adam Weiss, we talk with Abby Livingston from the Texas Tribune.  Abby Livingston joined The Texas Tribune in 2014 as the publication's first Washington bureau chief. In this role, she covers members in the Texas congressional delegation and campaigns back in her home state. A seventh-generation Texan, Abby grew up in Fort Worth and graduated from the University of Texas at Austin. Prior to the Tribune, Abby worked for NBC, CNN, National Journal and Roll Call. 

If you have ideas for guests, please email them to CR ([email protected]). 

In this podcast, hosted by CR Wooters and Adam Weiss, we talk with Adam Hodge, Senior Vice President for External Affairs of Ariel Investments. He gives us an inside look at what it is like to work with an investment firm that believes diversity is a key indicator of bottom line strength.  In addition to profits, Ariel prioritizes closing the wealth gap and expanding diverse voices in the C Suite.

Before his time at Ariel, Adam worked at the public affairs firm SKDKnickerbocker.  He also served as the communications director at the Democratic National Committee and was the U.S. Treasury Department deputy assistant secretary for Public Affairs. Earlier in his career, Adam served as the press secretary for House Majority Whip James Clyburn and in the office of former Senator Chris Dodd.

If you have ideas for guests, please email them to CR ([email protected]). 

In this podcast, hosted by CR Wooters and Adam Weiss, we talk with the Chief of Staff to the Governor of Illinois, Anne Caprara.  She gives up an inside look at what it is like to help manage a state during a pandemic. 

Anne has worked on campaigns at every level.  Most recently she managed Governor JB Pritzker’s winning campaign in Illinois and now she is the Governor’s Chief of Staff and top advisor.  In 2019 she was named #3 person to watch on Politicos power list.

If you have ideas for guests, please email them to CR ([email protected]).