PR Firm News: AI orchestration, leadership comms, and culturally grounded creative
Three moves worth your attention: a major agency unifies its AI stack, a leadership communications consultancy opens with seasoned credentials, and a creative shop launches with cultural competence at its core. Each one points to the same direction-simpler workflows, clearer narratives, and audience-first strategy.
Marketing Maven teams up with Cogzia to unify AI workflows
Marketing Maven signed on with AI-native platform Cogzia to connect the agency's SEO, content, and analytics tools into one secure, automated system. Cogzia's "Last Mile Infrastructure" links AI agents and data sources so teams can build custom apps that coordinate tools without manual glue work.
The partnership also introduces a "Citizen Developer" advantage, letting strategists create their own mini-apps to automate repetitive tasks-without waiting in the IT queue.
"Marketing agencies today are drowning in tabs. We have excellent tools for copy, distinct tools for imagery, and separate tools for analytics, but no connective tissue," said Marketing Maven CEO Lindsey Carnett. "Cogzia changes the equation. It allows us to link these disparate assets together, so they speak the same language."
- Why it matters for PR/comms: fewer context switches, tighter data control, faster delivery from brief to asset to report.
- Quick start: list your top 3 repetitive workflows (content briefing, asset approvals, reporting). Pilot one mini-app, define data permissions, and measure time saved per task.
If your team plans to build internal automations, explore focused training for marketers: AI Certification for Marketing Specialists.
Curtiss Partners launches in Minnesota with a focus on executive clarity
Curtiss Partners, a consultancy dedicated to executive communications, leadership effectiveness, and turning complex strategies into clear narratives, has opened in Victoria, MN. Founder and principal Gregory J. Zimprich most recently led IT and finance communications at Medtronic and previously held senior roles at Honeywell and General Mills.
Named in honor of Zimprich's late father, broadcaster Dean Curtiss, the firm offers three core services: executive & leadership communications, coaching & advisory, and transformation storytelling. Its tagline-"Clarity with Purpose"-signals a commitment to simplifying complexity and communicating with intention.
"Growing up listening to my father communicate with such honesty and clarity shaped my entire career," said Zimprich. "Curtiss Partners is about carrying forward those values and helping today's leaders communicate with purpose in the moments that matter most."
- Use it: partner on change narratives, leadership visibility, analyst and employee messaging, and measurement frameworks that prove behavior change.
- Tip: before a major strategy shift, write the one-page leader narrative, three supporting proof points, and the employee FAQ-then pressure test with a cross-functional review.
Origin & Oak Creative debuts with culturally competent, community-centered B2B work
Origin & Oak Creative opened in West Jordan, UT, led by former Arrive Home CCO Tai Pherribo Christensen. The agency focuses on culturally competent, community-centered messaging for B2B clients across mortgage, financial services, nonprofit, and corporate sectors, with services spanning strategy, content, campaigns, fractional C-suite support, and reputation work.
"What makes Origin & Oak different is that cultural competence isn't retrofitted into our process, it's the foundation," said Christensen. "We start with listening and understanding lived experiences, then build strategies that connect authentically."
- Why it matters: cultural misreads erode trust and stall growth. Upfront listening and community validation reduce that risk and improve relevance.
- Practical move: set audience councils, run message pre-tests with representative groups, and track trust signals (feedback quality, community referrals, sentiment shifts) alongside conversion metrics.
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