Walker Sands Expands Leadership Team as it Looks to Build on a Year of Strong Growth

Annie Gudorf and Payal Pathak elevate to Senior Vice President of Public Relations, while Rosita Vivanco becomes Vice President, Head of Client Services, and Drew Hower rises to the role of Vice President, Creative Director

Walker Sands, a full-service marketing agency focused on accelerating the growth of B2B brands, has promoted four core employees to new positions on the senior leadership team. Annie Gudorf, Payal Pathak, Rosita Vivanco and Drew Hower represent three different departments across Walker Sands — Public Relations, Client Services and Creative — and have each taken on new titles and responsibilities.

The promotions follow a year of impressive growth for Walker Sands. In 2021, the firm grew its revenue by 41%. Walker Sands also became the fifth-largest technology-focused firm in the United States after acquiring March Communications in August of last year, expanding its presence to the East Coast and adding offices in Boston and Atlanta.

Now the agency is looking to build on that momentum, strengthening its leadership with these recent elevations to continue providing award-winning work for top B2B brands.

• Annie Gudorf to Senior Vice President, Public Relations: Gudorf has played a pivotal role in accelerating the growth of the agency’s Public Relations department since joining Walker Sands in 2013, by increasing its caliber of clients, driving award-winning client work and nurturing talent. Gudorf also serves as Managing Director of Walker Sands’ Seattle office, where she oversees operations, including growing and engaging the team and leading client work from some of the most exciting B2B tech brands across the West Coast. In her new role as Senior Vice President, Gudorf will continue serving as strategic PR counsel for her clients, and focus on growing the agency’s PR department in Seattle through employee and client development.

• Payal Pathak to Senior Vice President, Public Relations: Since joining Walker Sands in 2013, Pathak has steadily risen through the ranks of the Public Relations department by leading some of the agency’s largest, longest and most complex PR engagements. During her tenure, Pathak built the agency’s executive media training program and has played an important role in establishing its expertise in financial technology — a practice area she oversees. As Senior Vice President of Public Relations, Pathak will remain a first call and trusted advisor for her clients, while continuing to shape the agency's next generation of PR leaders and executives. She will also support the growth and expansion of the department by leading initiatives aimed at process improvement, training, and coaching and cross-department collaboration.

• Rosita Vivanco, Vice President, Head of Client Services: Known for her ability to flawlessly navigate and support Walker Sands clients, Vivanco has played a critical role in maturing the Client Services department since joining the agency in 2018. Over the last year, she expanded the Client Services team by recruiting and onboarding a dozen new hires, all while building a culture of inclusivity and accountability. In her new role as Vice President and Head of Client Services, Vivanco will oversee the account and management teams responsible for bringing together Walker Sands services to meet the needs of the agency’s clients.

• Drew Hower to Vice President, Creative Director, Branding + Web Division: Since starting in 2018, Hower has helped transform Walker Sands into the agency that it is today. His efforts began with a rebranding project that solidified Walker Sands' positioning as a full-service B2B marketing agency that spans creative, demand generation, marketing strategy and more in addition to public relations. For the past two years, he has been overseeing Walker Sands' branding division — working with clients such as Hub Group, Adlucent and Social Solutions. His branding work has also earned repeated recognition from industry leaders, including, most recently, two Hermes Creative Awards, a MarCom Award and an IN2 SABRE Finalist. Now, in his role as Vice President, Hower will absorb the agency's website development division while continuing to create strategy-driven brands that help accelerate growth for B2B clients around the globe.

“Walker Sands has an outstanding senior leadership team that is primed to take our agency and our services to the next level,” said CEO Mike Santoro. “Annie, Payal, Rosita and Drew are essential to that vision and I am looking forward to seeing their innovative work and the guidance they will provide our staff as we look to take on another year of growth.”

To learn more about Walker Sands’ integrated marketing offerings, visit http://walkersands.com.

About Walker Sands

Walker Sands is a full-service B2B marketing agency with core capabilities in public relations, demand generation, branding, creative, marketing strategy and web. The firm’s integrated approach to marketing drives awareness, credibility and conversions for 100+ clients around the world. A nine-time Inc. 5000 honoree, Walker Sands is one of the fastest-growing B2B marketing agencies in the world, with offices in Chicago, San Francisco, Seattle, Boston and Atlanta. Learn more at https://www.walkersands.com, and for career opportunities visit https://www.walkersands.com/about/careers/.

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