Winner: Janet Moore, Director of Community Relations and Marketing, Mission & Health Hospitals
Janet Moore embodies the concept of "doing well by doing good." As the director of community relations and marketing for Asheville, North Carolina-based Mission &
Health Hospitals, she leads a department of eight public relations and marketing professionals with one goal in mind: creating a positive impact on Mission's brand and the
community it serves.
But 2005 presented challenges that threatened to prove her goal was easier said than accomplished; specifically, the yearlong transition of a new CEO demanded her
constant attention to ensure that Mission's messages and commitment to the community remained focused and visible. But rather than let the challenge dominate her time and
energy, she used the transition as an opportunity to get out in front of employees and community members. Along with her team, she facilitated one-on-one meetings with the
new CEO, Joseph Damore, and employees, physicians and community leaders; posted quarterly CEO update videos on the organization's Web site; and sent quarterly letters to
key constituents.
Moore's efforts did not go unnoticed. Not only did she guide the CEO's smooth transition, but she drastically increased Web traffic, from 667 visitors a day in March
2004 to 1,628 visitors a day two years later. And, as proof of her flexibility, adaptability and stellar multitasking, she did all this while launching successful
advertising/PR campaigns for Mission's Bariatric Surgery program, its use of Cyberknife technology to treat previously inoperable tumors, and its new women's health Web
site.
All told, Moore helped maintain Mission's position in the community as a caring, people-first organization - a position only strengthened by the results of her 2001
creation of "Mission Home Help" to help the hospital's staff purchase homes in North Carolina's expensive housing market. By 2005, it had helped 17 employees become new
home owners. If that doesn't demonstrate a commitment to her community, we don't know what does.
Honorable Mention
Neal Zipser, VP of communications for the Motor & Equipment Manufacturers Association, wears many hats, speaking with trade and consumer media around the world to
push the positive side of the automotive supply industry. His achievements for 2005 include spearheading the promotion of the AAPEX Show in Las Vegas, generating publicity
for new auto lighting products to help reduce pedestrian fatalities, and building awareness of counterfeit automotive parts, which present safety issues as well as costing
consumers needless repair costs.