Meet Antenna Group

As chief executive officer, Keith Zakheim ensures Antenna Group lives and breathes the firm’s core values — strong ethics that instill trust and impart transparency; respectful, positive, collaborative, mutually beneficial relationships among client-partners, colleagues and those with whom we conduct business; continual education for the highest standards; empowering entrepreneurial passion and a commitment to public service and volunteerism to give back to those less fortunate.

Keith has earned an industry-wide reputation for savvy, strategic counsel, forging deep partnerships and business connections and leading the firm during an era of unprecedented organic and acquisition-driven growth. A sought-after expert on crisis management, he has been a panelist and featured speaker at conferences worldwide. His work has been published widely on topics related to public relations, crisis management, presidential politics, domestic policy and foreign relations. Keith also hosts Raising Your Antenna, a popular podcast that features CEOs and Founders, investors and public policy experts.

Keith is the proud husband of Sara Zakheim and a father of four: JJ, Max, Alex, and Isabelle.

As head of Antenna Spaces, Christa is responsible for strategic planning, campaign coordination and project execution on behalf of Antenna Spaces’ client-partners, including real estate developers/owners and investors; brokerage firms; real estate technology companies; architecture, engineering and construction firms; and industry service providers.

Specialties: Campaign strategy, communications, branding, issues and crisis management, strategic partnerships, media relations, content creation, and business development.

Jake serves as Chief Growth Officer at Antenna Group and leads the agency’s work in clean energy, smart mobility, sustainable tech, environmental impact and venture capital. He is a strategic advisor to Antenna Group’s client-partners and leads Antenna Group’s strategic growth and business development efforts.

Jake has helped launch dozens of cleantech, mobility and sustainability startups, previously served as CEO & Founder of Eco Branding (acquired by Antenna Group in 2017) and was recognized as a Forbes 30 Under 30 in Energy in 2018.

For over 20 years, Andy Beck has worked in the upper echelons of the U.S. government and the private sector successfully spearheading public relations, marketing and public affairs campaigns that moved the needle. By engaging policymakers and the media, influencing influencers, building grassroots and social media momentum, developing alliances, driving consensus toward desired business and political results and opening new markets; he has helped companies and organizations gain greater brand recognition, profit from increased sales, influence policy and mitigate crises.

A first-rate strategic thinker, Andy is an expert at boiling down complex issues and persuasively articulating his clients’ case to a broad range of stakeholders through multiple channels. In doing so, he has developed a reputation as one of the nation’s most innovative communicators in the energy, manufacturing, transportation, finance and environmental sustainability sectors.

Andy has an impressive book of media and government contacts and a tremendous understanding of the workings of the U.S. and international governments, having served as the Director of Public Affairs for the U.S. Department of Energy—the U.S. government’s top energy spokesperson and communications strategist. He also served as the senior communications and outreach advisor to the head of the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency and as a senior communications advisor the U.S. Department of Transportation Secretary.

Jacob is an award winning performance veteran and thought leader with 20 years’ experience implementing audience-first, data-driven, content and media solutions for the world’s most complex brands.

As Executive Vice President, Head of Performance and Digital Marketing, Jacob is responsible for advancing Antenna Group’s audience-based media activation capabilities across paid, earned and owned environments, creating a unique, end-to-end, MarCom solution built specifically to accelerate growth for the world’s most purpose-driven brands. Prior to Antenna Group, Jacob ran the U.S. Performance units at some of the world’s largest media agencies, including Omnicom and WPP. Most recently, he was responsible for creating and leading the N. American Performance Intelligence group launched at Edelman in 2020.

Sharon has over a decade of experience working with healthcare companies, from conglomerates to startups. Whether it’s launching a new treatment or bringing life to a hundred-year-old brand, she builds targeted strategic communications programs that drive business objectives.

Managing a wide variety of campaigns, including media relations, thought leadership, social media, digital marketing and beyond, Sharon builds integrated marketing programs that target priority audiences with compelling messaging across all relevant platforms. From FDA approvals to campaign and product launches, her clients span the healthcare sector including oncology + immunotherapy, infectious disease, neurology, dermatology, gastroenterology, ophthalmology, dentistry, pain management and mental health.

Jared brings more than 10 years of energy industry background to support Antenna Group’s energy and cleantech clients with strategic marketing and PR counsel.

His initial work in the energy industry was with the Solar Energy Industries Association, where he supported the organization’s policy efforts with strategic communications counsel.

He has since advised dozens of solar and cleantech firms on marketing and public relations.

Prior to his solar career, Jared was an agriculture and natural resources policy advisor to U.S. Senator Chuck Hagel.

Jared has an MBA from Berkeley’s Haas School of Business.

As Senior Vice President of the digital division, Scott oversees the creative and web development team for the agency. Scott joined forces with Antenna Group in 2017 after their acquisition of Chicago Digital, a digital marketing & web agency he co-founded in 2009. With more than 12 years experience and over 500 website projects completed, Scott is responsible for the execution of the creative and engineering team.

Scott graduated from the University of Illinois College of ACES. The College of ACES is a global leader in agricultural, consumer, and environmental sciences. His background along with strong skill-set in business, marketing and engineering lends itself to the projects and businesses we work with at Antenna Group that are making a positive impact on the world.

Hardy Spire is a veteran communicator specializing in media strategy & campaigns, messaging, public affairs and creative development. Hardy is an experienced media trainer and crisis manager and has worked extensively with C-suite executives.

Prior to his public relations career, Hardy spent more than two decades as a national television news producer.  Most recently Hardy worked as a Senior Producer at CNN in Washington, D.C. where he oversaw production of “Inside Politics” with John King each weekday and Sunday, and prior to that, “Reliable Sources” with Brian Stelter and Howard Kurtz. He also spent time on the production teams for “The Lead”, “The Situation Room”, and “State of the Union”. Hardy was part of CNN’s Emmy-award winning 2012 election night broadcast.

Before CNN, Hardy was in charge of “EnergyNOW!”, a Capitol Hill-based weekly television news magazine airing on Bloomberg and WJLA-TV where his team of former network news correspondents and producers delved into the most pressing stories of the day about energy, the environment, technology, and politics.

Hardy began his career at CBS News in New York, and later Washington, D.C.  He spent fifteen years learning the news business from the ground up including four years traveling the world as White House producer for CBS correspondent Bill Plante, and later as Senior Producer for the CBS News Early Show.

Ryan joined Antenna Group in 2008 and has been a Vice President in the firm’s real estate practice since 2014. Both creative and analytical, Ryan has guided the strategic direction and implementation of communications campaigns for companies across the entire spectrum of real estate. A former journalist, he is an expert in communications strategy development, messaging, content development, team coordination, media strategy and relations, issues/crisis management, grassroots campaign coordination, and influencer partnerships. Ryan holds bachelor’s degrees in journalism and english from the University of Scranton.

Vanessa Donohue is a director in Antenna Group’s healthcare practice. With nearly a decade of experience working agency and corporate PR, Vanessa has managed and executed a wide variety of media-focused campaigns for Fortune 500 companies and startups alike. Her previous industry experience runs the gamut, including work in healthcare diagnostics, pharmaceutical, consumer, tech and nonprofit. She considers herself a professional storyteller, learning on real feedback from her established list of media contacts to guide her counsel. These relationships have secured placements in outlets such as CNN, TODAY, ABC, New York Times, USA TODAY and more.

Gina specializes in media relations, message development and content creation for the lifestyle sectors, with expertise in luxury real estate, architecture and interior design. Prior to joining Antenna, Gina spent five years at M18 Public Relations, where she led communications campaigns for high-profile real estate developments in New York, Los Angeles and Miami. A former journalist and television producer, Gina served as a founding editor for Mansion Global—Dow Jones’ digital destination for luxury listings and real estate news—and has worked for award-winning national news outlets including Al Jazeera Media Network, Bloomberg Television and MSNBC. A California native, Gina graduated from the University of California, Davis with degrees in Communication and English with a creative writing emphasis. She holds a Master’s Degree in Journalism: Business & Economic Reporting from New York University.

Regan has 9+ years of experience in climate tech and clean energy, with expertise in public relations, go-to-market strategy, brand identity, policy advocacy, crisis communications, event development and sales enablement. As Vice President at Antenna Group, Regan drives business growth agency-wide and serves as the strategic lead for 20+ category-leading companies in grid and building decarbonization, renewables, storage, mobility, venture, and the circular economy.

As a Vice President on Antenna Group’s Spaces team, Jorge Mendez is at the helm of some of the country’s most exciting real estate marketing campaigns. Whether promoting cutting-edge developments or raising awareness around critical industry trends, Jorge’s tenacity and relationship-focused approach ensure client expectations are not only fulfilled but surpassed. With nearly a decade in the real estate marketing world, Jorge has partnered with a diverse roster of industry-leading clients to drive commercial objectives, promote stakeholder buy-in, and maximize overall visibility. Over the course of his career, Jorge has proven himself to be a valuable C-suite counselor, working hand in hand with top real estate executives to advance and shape their personal and professional profiles. Prior to joining Antenna, Jorge spent nearly a decade with Miami-based rbb Communications, where he oversaw a variety of clients ranging from professional and consumer services to tip-of-the-spear sustainability companies. He also oversaw rbbU, the company’s professional development program.

Isaac has spent the last 8 years in PR and communications, creating media strategy, building journalist relationships and securing top-tier coverage for companies in fields such as cleantech, energy, mobility, B2B tech, healthcare, cybersecurity and blockchain. His work is underlined by a passion for distilling emerging technologies, important industry conversations and new ideas into compelling narratives for mainstream and specialized audiences.

As Director of Media Relations, Isaac oversees the planning, strategy and execution of media campaigns for teams across all of Antenna Group’s Ecosystems, ensuring clients’ stories are told successfully and with the utmost consideration for reaching key audiences with key messages.

Working on behalf of organizations ranging from stealth startups to nonprofit advocacy groups to established, publicly-traded industry players, Isaac has secured features in publications including The Wall Street Journal, Financial Times, Reuters, The Washington Post, CNBC, NPR, Bloomberg, WIRED, TechCrunch, VentureBeat, Fast Company, Greentech Media, Curbed and many more.

Isaac has a BA in International Economic Relations from American University in Washington, DC.

Neal Urwitz works at the intersection of the policy process and public relations, focusing on using public pressure to create policy change.

An active Democrat, he worked closely with National Security Leaders for Biden, a large third-party organization supporting President Biden’s campaign. A PR professional with 16 years’ experience, he has worked with many clean energy, energy efficiency, technology, transportation, and defense clients on thought leadership and policy advocacy campaigns.

Neal served as Director of External Relations at the Center for a New American Security (CNAS) a large national security think tank, and has worked at PR firms including Edelman, kglobal, and LEVICK. An op-ed expert, he has ghostwritten and placed op-eds in The New York Times, The Wall Street Journal, and The Washington Post among many others, and has published under his own name in The USA Today, Politico, The Houston Chronicle, CNN.com and FoxNews.com.

Leveraging her signature storytelling style, DC connections, and past as a television news journalist, Public Affairs Account Director Caleigh Bourgeois builds strong relationships between her clients and the public. With strong experience in energy, tech, and crisis management, Caleigh curates and leads communications strategies for a variety of clients. She’s also a seasoned media trainer, preparing executives for the tough questions. A writer first and foremost, Caleigh has a successful track record of creating and placing content for clients including thought leadership articles, web copy, and white papers.

Sally is a master storyteller who fuses strategy with creativity and knows how to tie impactful messages to attention-grabbing visuals. Before joining Antenna Group, Sally spent 20+ years as a television news reporter, most recently working as Senior National Correspondent in Hearst Television’s Washington News Bureau.

From the White House to Capitol Hill to the campaign trail, Sally reported on many of the biggest political, national, and international news stories of the day. She has interviewed sitting and former presidents, vice presidents, members of the President’s Cabinet, members of Congress, and other prominent newsmakers, and led Hearst’s award-winning station group coverage of national political party conventions and presidential elections.

Dave has spent years in sales, marketing, business automation, website development and online marketing. Now he takes that experience and leads our team of Developers in creating bespoke, conversion focussed websites