Sarah is a strategic communications and reputation management specialist.

During her 20 year career, she has worked within the corporate affairs teams of three large publicly-listed companies across three vastly different industries of mining, aviation and insurance (Alcoa, Qantas and Crawford & Company). She has also worked in communications roles within the not-for-profit sector and professional services (legal), after starting her career in radio journalism.

Sarah is passionate about all facets of corporate communication and the critical role that expertly crafted narrative and campaigns play in both external brand perception and employee engagement.

Before founding Say That, Sarah rose to the role of Director of Communication (Asia Pacific), for USA-headquartered Crawford & Company. In this role, she worked at a strategic level as a member of both the Australian and Asian Executive Leadership Teams.

Starting her career as a journalist has given Sarah intimate knowledge and first-hand experience with the needs of ‘the other side’ to PR. A key strength is her ability to leverage the media to successfully deliver no-cost positive PR; helping brands stand out for all the right reasons.

Equally, Sarah’s knowledge of the media becomes invaluable when a crisis, with potential reputational impacts, presents itself. When journalists come knocking through a negative lens, Sarah is expert at managing a message to protect a brand’s reputation. Knowing what to say, what not to say, how to context the issue, and the timing of the message is paramount.

Crisis communications and issues management (internal and external) have spanned Sarah’s entire career – from Hollywood’s Erin Brockovich publicly fighting Alcoa, through to being a senior member of the media team at arguably Australia’s most well-known brand, Qantas (Sarah joined the team as then CEO Alan Joyce grounded the airline during the industrial disputes of 2011). Sarah’s clarity of thought under pressure is hard to find.

Sarah also enjoys partnering with executive leadership teams to advise and create on-point internal communications programs. She has a proven track-record of becoming a trusted advisor to CEOs and senior level executives. Sarah has become known for her fearless advice to senior leaders and is no stranger to candid conversations in order to land in the right zone for the brand.

Sarah holds a Bachelor of Mass Communication (Journalism and PR) from Curtin University of Technology in Perth, Western Australia.