About the Panel

Surviving the Storm: Navigating your Brand Through the Great Recession

A panel discussion on how businesses can use marketing and communications to position brands for success in the downturn

Karen Kahn, Sun Microsystems
Karen Kahn is Vice President of Global Communications at Sun Microsystems. Her worldwide responsibilities include industry analyst relations, executive communications, corporate and financial communications, product/services public relations and customer references. Her group is also responsible for editorial strategy on Sun.com properties and social/new media programs. Kahn also leads Sun’s communications program around Sun’s strategic partnerships (Microsoft, HP, Intel, Dell, Google, etc.) and acquisition strategy. Kahn has been at Sun since 2003. She brings nearly 20 years of agency, corporate and journalism experience to Sun.

Prior to joining Sun she served as a tech practice leader and SVP at two of the industry’s largest PR shops—Fleishman-Hillard and Weber Shandwick. She also worked as a writer for Inc. magazine and Frontline on PBS. She has an MBA from Boston University and a BS degree from the Newhouse School of Journalism at Syracuse University.

David Weiskopf, Charles Schwab
David is the Vice President of Corporate Public Relations at Charles Schwab. His responsibilities include managing all media relations initiatives and activities in support of Schwab’s Investor Services (Retail) business.

Before joining Schwab in 2008, David was Vice President, Communications Manager at Wells Fargo in the Consumer Credit Group, where he directed all external and internal communications programs. Prior to Wells Fargo in 2006, he was vice president of corporate communications at Chiron Corporation, responsible for all external, internal and corporate reputation initiatives. Before that, David was a senior vice president at Ketchum and Weber Shandwick pr agencies managing several major pieces of business, including Genentech and Hewlett Packard.

He also worked at Levis Strauss & Company, where he was director of global public / government affairs. While there, he managed issues including intellectual property protection, trade policy and worker rights. David has extensive experience in law and government. He had a tenure at a law firm that specialized in environmental and health law. He also worked in Washington, D.C. on Capitol Hill in the US Senate and served in the U.S. Departments of State and Justice, focusing mostly on defense and foreign policy.

Rachel Konrad, Tesla Motors
Rachel Konrad is Senior Manager of Communications at Silicon Valley-based electric car company Telsa Motors Inc. A journalist by trade, her responsibilities at Telsa cover all facets of communications with a focus on product-oriented media relations, internal communications, investor relations, government relations and customer relations. Rachel frequently serves a spokesperson for San Carlos, California based Tesla, which remains the only production automaker with a highway-capable EV for sale today. She brings over fifteen years of journalism and public relations experience to Tesla.

Prior to joining Tesla, Rachel worked as a journalist for The Associated Press, CNET, Detroit Free Press and Spokesman Review reporting extensively on the global technology and automobile industries. Rachel has also covered venture capital, real estate, media, finance, airlines, consumer debt and the economy. She has two degrees, BS/BA—history and journalism, from Northwestern University and won an international journalism fellowship at John Hopkins University’s Paul H. Nitze School of Advanced International Studies.

Keely Wachs, BrightSource Energy
Keely Wachs is the Sr. Director of Corporate Communications for BrightSource Energy. In this role, he is responsible for leading the solar company’s global public relations, internal communications, branding and marketing teams.

Before joining BrightSource Energy, Keely ran Pacific Gas & Electric’s Environmental Communications Department, where he oversaw the utility’s renewable energy, climate change, clean air transportation, energy efficiency, and land stewardship communications efforts.

Keely’s previous experience includes co-founding and overseeing Blanc & Otus Public Relations’ Cleantech practice. Keely also managed public diplomacy programs for the U.S. Department of State and marketing programs for Intel’s Latin American operations.

Keely holds a Masters in International Affairs from the University of California, San Diego with a focus on environmental and economic policy, and a B.A. in Latin American Studies from the University of California, Berkeley.

Will Aldrich, TripIt
Will brings more than 12 years of web product development leadership experience to the TripIt team. Will is tasked with making TripIt as useful, easy, and fun as it can possibly be.

Prior to TripIt, Will was senior director of product for Yahoo! where he led the Profiles, Mash and Photos teams. Will was closely involved in planning and launching the social networking strategy at Yahoo! Prior to Yahoo!, Will co-founded and ran product for vVault (now part of Biscom) and spent 3 years at CNET where he was a member of Download.com’s launch team. Will received a B.A. from the Walsh School of Foreign Service at Georgetown University and serves on the board of Mammoth Lakes Trails Public Access.

Ram Menon, TIBCO Software
Mr. Menon is responsible for Product Strategy, Product Management, Product Marketing, Field Marketing, Corporate Communications, Branding and Customer Programs worldwide. Prior to this role, Mr. Menon served as the Chief Strategist of the company, responsible for defining and executing corporate strategic initiatives, including new product strategy, M&A direction, and emerging vertical markets. Prior to joining TIBCO, Mr. Menon was with Accenture, a global consulting firm, where he specialized in supply chain and e-commerce strategy, consulting with Global 1000 companies. Mr. Menon holds an undergraduate degree in Industrial Engineering and pursued graduate work in Industrial & Management Engineering.