Episode 34: The Path to CCO+ with Bianca Olson
Episode 34: The Path to CCO+ with Bianca Olson Welcome to the Communications Business Advisor™ podcast with host Tara McDonagh. In this episode, Tara sits down with Bianca Olson, Chief Communications Officer at HMH (Houghton Mifflin Harcourt)—a learning company focused on the K–12 market—where she reports directly to the CEO. Bianca traces her path from agency PR […]
Episode 19: Communicators’ Word of 2025
Episode 19: Communicators’ Word of 2025 Welcome to the final episode in 2024 of the Communications Business Advisor™ podcast with your host, Tara McDonagh. In this episode, Tara addresses a specific challenge faced by communications leaders looking to elevate their strategic role in corporate environments. In this episode, we explore… No: the professional communicators’ word of […]
Episode 18: You’re (Probably) Not Crazy
Episode 18: You’re (Probably) Not Crazy Welcome to Episode 18 of the Communications Business Advisor™ podcast, your go-to for advancing in corporate communications as a strategic business advisor. Today, we’re diving into that all-too-familiar feeling—wondering if you’re losing your mind from handling off-the-wall requests, lazy requests, and “I don’t want to admit I don’t know how to […]
Episode 12: The Shadow Communicator
Episode 12: The Shadow Communicator In this episode of the Communications Business Advisor Podcast, Tara McDonagh explores the concept of the “shadow communicator”—individuals hired within specific business areas to handle communications tasks independently of the central communications team. Listeners will hear about: The challenges these shadow communicators pose, such as undermining established communication efforts and spreading […]
Episode 11: HR and Marketing, We Need to Talk
Episode 11: HR and Marketing, we need to talk We’re wrapping the first season of the Communications Business Advisor Podcast! But not before we talk about HR and Marketing … and Comms too. The HR and Marketing departments can be powerful allies, AND they can also be kind of a nightmare to work with. Let’s […]
Episode 10: The Agency Impact in Corporate Communications
Episode 10: The Agency Impact in Corporate Communications “If we set up our structures to match what agencies look like, we lose something significant in our partnership, thinking, and actions. Most importantly, our field continues to lose the battle for treatment as a critical function, a critical business function, not a service area.” –Tara McDonagh […]
Episode 8: The First Dirty ‘P’ Word…Process
Episode 8: The First Dirty ‘P’ Word…Process Process––you’re not alone if that word makes you cringe. You may find processes stifling to your creativity or just generally something that’s a necessary evil. On this episode of the Communications Business Advisor podcast, Tara challenges the way we think about processes. It’s time to turn the dirty […]