Kevin M. Waetke, APR
Vice President -- Strategic Communications
National Pork Board
Des Moines, Iowa
Applying for: Midwest District Director
Alternate Position(s):
Biography
As vice president of strategic communications, Kevin Waetke leads internal and external
communications efforts for the National Pork Board based in Des Moines, Iowa. With other
members of the Board's senior management team, he plays a critical role in defining and leading
the national communications strategy, and delivering clear and consistent messages to America’s
pork producers, national media, opinion leaders, consumers and other key audiences. Waetke
grew up on a century hog farm in eastern Iowa and uses this experience daily in his interaction
with the 15 producer board members of the Pork Checkoff, as well as with the numerous producer
committees that are led by volunteer pig farmers.
He joined the Pork Checkoff in 2013 and in that time assisted the National Pork Board in defining
and implementing its new vision, mission and five-year strategic plan. With a combination of
agriculture and communications experience, he is excited to be part of a team that shares the
story of U.S. pork production and helps to shape the dialogue and build relationships with the
industry's key players on a national and global level.
On a national level, Waetke is currently a member of the U.S. Farmers and Ranchers Alliance
communications committee, where he co-leads a sub-committee focused on research and
message development. People have an emotional connection with food and currently the U.S. food
production industry is facing ongoing cynicism and criticism about how food is produced. The
USFRA is an organization of 100 farm and agriculture-related industries with a sole mission of
sharing the story of modern agricultural production. Waetke helps to shape this story through the
development of communications tools. He travels the country in support of USFRA and the
National Pork Board, speaking to organizations and participating in the ongoing dialogue about
food production, agriculture, social responsibility and consumer outreach.
Prior to joining the National Pork Board, Waetke spent 10 years leading communications in the
U.S. financial services industry. He previously worked at life insurance and annuity leader Aviva
USA, and, prior to that, as the communications director for Wells Fargo Home Mortgage. At Aviva
USA, Waetke was the Assistant Vice President of corporate communications and had dual roles
of building the Aviva brand in the U.S. following its acquisition by London-based Aviva plc, and
defending the life insurance and annuity business model from critics.
During his seven years with Wells Fargo – from 2003 to 2010 – he directed national media
relations outreach during the height of the U.S. financial downturn. During those years, Waetke led
the development of community outreach and education programs designed to assist homeowners
in modifying their housing debt. The balance of his final three years at Wells Fargo were spent in
daily communications with major national news media including the Wall Street Journal, USA
Today, the Associated Press, National Public Radio, national television networks (NBC, CBS,
ABC, CNN) and the Reuters and Dow Jones newswires.
Professionally, Waetke has also led public relations for Maytag Corporation (Newton, Iowa) in
2003, just prior to its acquisition by Whirlpool. He was director of corporate communications for
MidAmerican Energy Holdings Company (1997-2003) and was recognized for his crisis
communications and emergency preparedness. He began is PR career in health care at Mercy
Medical Center (1992-1997).
He is also a former news reporter and assignment editor for WHO-TV (1986-1991), and also
worked in television news at KWWL-TV (Waterloo, Iowa), WQAD-TV (Moline, Illinois) and KWQCTV
(Davenport, Iowa). Waetke credits his years as a news reporter in shaping his professional
public and media relations skills, and his ability to distill complex information into easily
understandable concepts. The ability to connect with individuals on a personal basis and then
share their stories through words and video are the building blocks of proactive communications.
In 2013, he served as an adjunct professor to the Drake University School of Journalism and Mass
Communications, teaching a course in crisis communications and reputation management. He
has both graduate and undergraduate degrees in Journalism and Mass Communications from
Drake University, Des Moines.
Waetke is married and has two children from a previous marriage and two step-children. He and
his family live in Johnston, Iowa.
PRSA Accomplishments
Member since 1992. Board member (on and off) several years from 1998 to 2015, based on
following offices held:
--Currently Midwest region director and serve on the national board of PRSA. Appointed by executive committee in Dec. 2016.
--As Midwest regional director, I also serve as a board representative to the PRSA Foundation, assisting in scholarship program deployment. In May 2017, I was also named to the PRSA board's finance committee.
--Student advisor to Drake University, 2004-2007; 2010-2015.
--Named outstanding PR Alumni from Drake University in 2015 for serve as student chapter advisor.
--Delegate to national, 2000-2003
--Program chair, 1998-1999
Governance Skills
The most recent activity was leading the senior management team of the National Pork Board in defining its 2015-2020 strategic plan to guide and direct the association's programs and outreach in representing America's 60,000 pork producers. As a program of the USDA, the National Pork Board is involved in setting ag policy for the pork industry. Personally, I oversee a team of communications staff (8 total) setting direction and developing support materials including print and digital publications, video production and social media projects. As VP, I oversee a budget of $3.1 million designed to create programs for research, pork promotion and consumer and pig farmer information. Similarly, at Wells Fargo, I led a team of communicators which managed the intricacies of rebuilding the company brand following the U.S. recession (2008-2010) due to ongoing foreclosures by the bank and validating its lending policies.
My contribution in this area is also not limited to past work experience. I have enjoyed serving on PRSA's national board in my capacity as Midwest regional director. Through the implementation of the strategic plan, the national board is guided by a vision of excellence and commitment. I greatly respect my fellow board members, the individual contributions they make and the thought leadership they demonstrate.
I have also been involved in several non-profit organizations over the years, ultimately assuming a leadership or chair position (Anawim Housing, Des Moines Community Playhouse, Clive Community Foundation and on communication teams with the Greater Des Moines Partnership.) A strength I have is identifying institutional priorities and developing a strategy and team for meeting the needs of these priorities. My experience through volunteer assignments is especially pertinent given that the workers assigned to the duties are often doing it out of the kindness of their hearts and may be more difficult to motivate.
Leadership Skills
My primary duties have always revolved around crisis communications and reputation management which is at the foundation of every for-profit and not-for-profit organization. Sharing your story and defining your organization's value begins with defining communications -- from audiences to message development, implementation of tools and measurement and evaluation. I have performed this task in each of my positions and have always been viewed as a go-to resource for my company due to my tenure of communications experience and calm, swift and flexible attitude.
I currently lead communications for the National Pork Board and connect with allied industries including other commodity groups, USDA and governmental groups. In many instances since 1997, when I joined MidAmerican Energy Holdings Co. (now Berkshire Hathaway Energy), I have served in project leadership roles to define and implement communications activities and programs. This has included managing crisis projects like power outages and gas leaks/explosions, to both friendly and hostile merger and acquisition attempts. I expanded this role while at Maytag (plant closures, union strife and outsourcing) and Wells Fargo (managing the US financial meltdown).
In each case, I enjoy defining the essence of the message and prioritizing the audiences with whom the organization must share information. I think I would add great value to PRSA and, with all of my children now out of the house, I am able to devote more time to a national organization like PRSA.
Strengths
The greatest level of training I have received over the years has been in crisis communications and emergency management. I have studied through courses presented by Mercy Hospital (emergency response), MidAmerican Energy (crisis management) and Wells Fargo & Co. (quarterly and annual regional communication summits led by both Wells Fargo & Company corporate office and Wells Fargo Home Mortgage.
This experience allowed me to build a 1.5 credit hour program for graduate students implemented in 2013. The weekend course offered me the opportunity to teach the highlights of brand development and protection, crisis response, media training, building trust and reputation management. The course was especially valuable to me due to the number of hours invested in program development and the ability to train graduate students working on either their Masters in Communications or their MBA. My goal was to train future business leaders in communications basics, which may often be lacking in some recent graduates and in the business community.
Additionally, I have been through years of media and presentation training and leadership development in the organizations and companies where I have worked including:
--Managing difficult conversations with employees
--EASE presentation training (Engage, Acknowledge, Share and Earn Trust)
--Several PRSA workshops including strategic media relations and crisis communications program development
--Social media development and engagement
Volunteer Commitment
I am fortunate in that my employer, the National Pork Board, is also an association that excels due to the volunteer efforts of its nationally elected board of directors and the more than 200 pig farmer volunteers who serve in advisory capacity on nine specific committees. In short, volunteerism is recognized by the senior leadership team of the National Pork Board and I currently have my CEO's full support to participate in both personal and professional volunteer assignments.
I approach my work from a position as servant leader and appreciate that my role on the Board of PRSA is not limited to the board member duties, but also the assignment to committees. In my case, I also serve on the board of the PRSA Foundation and on the Finance committee. Additionally, I am committed to maintaining my outreach to the central Iowa chapter and keeping in touch with the leadership of the other Midwest chapters of which I have the honor to represent.
My leadership team understands completely that all of the volunteer work cannot simply be accomplished after 5 p.m. and on the weekends. That is why I have a firm commitment to contribute hours to PRSA while on the clock of my day job (within reason). My work ethic is strong and I regularly step forward to assume responsibility. In the past 30 years, I feel I have been successful at balancing work commitments (the day job) with my volunteerism.
Position Statement #1
Prompt: The lines continue to blur among the disciplines of public relations, marketing, IT and customer service, and the need increases to create more collaborative teams and hybrid professionals. PRSA has continued to evolve and respond to these issues in support of our members, partners and colleagues. What do you believe are the strongest components of PRSA’s strategic plan that will help our members address these challenges, and how will PRSA remain relevant and sustainable for the future?
This is an astute question as, on a personal level, in the past year I was appointed to lead a Digital Strategy Team to better understand the blurring requirements of today's communications professionals. This team was established to increase collaboration at work; it is specifically comprised of Communications, Marketing and IT leaders and implementation experts.
The most significant area for enhancement through the PRSA strategic plan is to ensure that PRSA remains relevant to all PR practitioners. In my work in the past few months on the national board, I have been able to articulate to the board and leadership team the importance of "remaining relevant." I see this exact same need in my association work with the National Pork Board. The strategic planning process is critical in defining and redefining the organization. And I support what PRSA has done in committing to a three-year strategic plan.
In the short term, PRSA must commit to audience segmentation and to seeking and placing younger, mid-level and more mature PR practitioners on its committees, task forces and work groups. There exists clear and distinct needs of all communications professionals and the strategic plan recognizes the diversity of our practitioners.
Defining programs to meet the needs of new graduates and young professionals, as well as midlevel and more mature members is critical to long-term success. Additionally, I have always appreciated the distinct cohorts for practitioners in agency, healthcare, financial services, etc. and in fact, I just personally joined the Ag Relations Council in an effort to network and learn from ag communications professionals. I was previously not aware that ARC was affiliated with PRSA. I see benefit in better promoting the affiliate organizations to the PRSA membership.
Development of regional workshops and more local outreach is also valuable given the budget constraints facing many organizations. Educational opportunities through new technology and webinars would serve two purposes: meet the needs of practitioners in their office without investing in travel dollars, and also create offerings that are potentially more timely and can be more quickly put together and promoted in the moment. Of course, each of these steps should first be considered only after thorough research of member interests.
Position Statement # 2
Prompt: PRSA has become more complex and diverse in recent years. While the Society must become nimbler, we also are cognizant that we must help prepare our members to meet tomorrow’s challenges as leaders at every level. The role of the communications professional will continue to evolve, and PRSA will anticipate future trends, and support our members at every stage of their career. As a member of PRSA’s national board, what do you see as your role in contributing to helping our membership meet tomorrow’s challenges as leaders?
Change management and new skill development, training and adoption is critical to succeed in today's increasingly diverse work environment. When I note diversity, it is not limited to ethnic diversity. Age, skills set, gender, ethnicity and cultural understanding are important components to best understanding audiences. As a leader on the national PRSA board, I will work hard to come to every meeting with the pre-work assignments complete so I can best engage and provide insight from my professional world to specifically help the organization to be nimble, insightful, accountable and relevant to its members.
PRSA can best help by serving on three levels:
1. Promoting and validating the PR industry as an essential, relevant and highly valuable career choice. This includes defining what responsible PR/Communications is and what it is not. I think this past election cycle brought out the worst in communicators reputations -- and we need to regain our position of credibility following a divisive election cycle.
2. Research into how communications is changing. New media, digital applications and understanding the motivation behind audience mindset and tool adoption is essential to keep aging PR pros up to speed on current trends and new media. We need to showcase why new media should not be feared but viewed as just one more tool in our overflowing toolbox.
3. Education for young, mid-career and mature PR counselors. PRSA has to be the go-to place for learning about the changes underway in our industry. Those changes are not just specific to communications tools but may be specific to individual industries. That is where the defined counselor networks come into play.
In just the past six months, I have learned so much from my peers on the board and from the PRSA senior leadership team. I look forward to continuing to increase my knowledge and also contributing at a much higher level in the two years that lay ahead.
Kevin M. Waetke, APR
Category
Midwest District Director