Stephen Ludlow Email & Phone Number

Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada

Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada

► Team lead for multiple agency accounts across PR and influencer work including Samsung Canada, Google Cloud, KRAFTON Montreal, Coda Payments, and World Vision Canada. ► Project management lead for complex work with multiple stakeholders, navigating between internal production and development, to intra-agency review and collaboration, to finally presenting to clients and implementing feedback accordingly. ► Supervisor of multiple levels of team members, responsible for resourcing, coaching, advisement on strategy and execution, and leading brainstorms.

Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada

► Provided strategic counsel, guidance and leadership to clients and staff in the areas of influencer programs, campaign development, content strategy and paid media.► Manager of complex influencer marketing programs from micro to mid- and top-tier content creators, with a focus on earned creator coverage. Programs included Stranger Things x Xbox activation, console seedings, coordination of stream takeovers on Xbox Twitch channel, and increasing awareness of Xbox's commitment to inclusive gaming. ► Ongoing ideation, campaign development, support, and strategic consultation around major initiatives and key moments to produce influencer content for the U.S. market, with corresponding delivery and collaboration of global strategies to INTL markets. ► Relationship holder with select influencers, primarily in the LGBTQIA+ community, to gauge ongoing sentiment and engagement opportunities.► Overseer and manager of creator coverage reporting, KPI tracking, and ongoing cross-company efforts in concert with other agencies and teams, with knowledge of Captiv8 and CreatorIQ platforms. ► Supervisor of junior team members ensuring constant development of their skills, motivating, coaching, consistently providing feedback.► Proponent of cross-team collaboration, acting as the agency counterpart to extended creative, consumer, strategy, and digital teams. Also acted as a liaison to extended Microsoft teams across production, marketing, and accessibility. ► Contributed to the strategic ideation and planning of the Xbox Next Level creator program, an internal Microsoft pilot program intended to provide tools and training to emerging creators. Played a key role in initial brainstorms of content overview, spokespeople and educators to take part, creator communications and contracting, and overall client counterpart lead in the build up to kickoff.

Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada

► Agency team lead in providing strategic counsel, guidance and leadership to clients and staff in the areas of earned influencer programs, campaign development, content strategy and paid media.► Managed the ideation and development of a comprehensive Surface earned seeding kit program, which spanned 41 creators across three priority audiences (Gen-Z, gamers, and creatives) which surpassed KPIs and generated 101 social posts, 170K engagements, and 387K video views. ► Acting as the agency lead of the US creator team for Surface + Windows, was responsible for driving integrated work between global agency counterparts, production leads, creative teams, and strategy teams. ► Developed key relationships with LGBTQIA+ creators to bring focus to their work and engage new, diverse audiences on behalf of Microsoft with the development of Surface Portraits program, a highly customized seeding kit that was uniquely developed to each of the 10 creators involved in the seeding.► Overseer and manager of creator coverage reporting, KPI tracking, and inter-agency work with other Microsoft PR and marketing agency teams to ensure consistent collaboration and communication on behalf of our primary client. This extended across multiple seeding kit activations, planning of in-person events with creator attendance, partnerships with teams across Microsoft (Xbox gaming, accessibility), and overall strategic execution of PR plans. ► Supervisor of four junior team members ensuring constant development of their skills to motivate and coach their upwards growth, with continued mentorship as I transitioned into a new role as Director of Influencer Strategy for Xbox. ► Proficient across creator management tools including Captiv8, with a deep knowledge of Microsoft Office Suite (M365), Teams, and PowerPoint.

Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada

► Day-to-day lead of strategic planning for key Xbox Game Studios game franchises and published titles including “Halo Infinite,” "Gears 5,"​ "Gears Tactics," "CrossfireX," "Sea of Thieves,” "Battletoads" and "Everwild"► Contribute to planning and tactical execution of global communications campaigns across Xbox Game Studios games portfolio, collaborating with extended PR, marketing, and developer teams► Lead in message development to craft key messages and Q&A to guide overarching talk tracks and storytelling for both games and events, including the Xbox Games Showcase (July 2020)► Direct manager of junior-level staff and teams, fostering professional development through mentorship, guidance on day-to-day work, and performance evaluations

Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada

► Acted as lead for media scheduling of all Xbox interviews and BCD engagements at E3 2019, work that carried over to role as lead of media scheduling and coverage reporting for X019 - a global celebration of all things Xbox► Acted as direct manager of junior-level staff and teams, fostering professional development through mentorship, guidance on day-to-day work, and performance evaluations► Acted as local office lead for 'Edelman Equal', a company-wide network for LGBTQ employees and allies, with related work spanning pro bono work with non-profits in the Vancouver lower mainland, organizing committee volunteer days to support LGBTQ initiatives, and celebrating Pride events in the Vancouver office

Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada

► Provided PR counsel and support for key Xbox Game Studios published titles including "Gears of War 4,"​ "Sea of Thieves,” “Minecraft: Education Edition," "Dead Rising 4,"​ and "Crackdown 3"​ ► Coordinated and managed first- and third-party publisher PR activations through story pitching, arranging spokespeople interviews, event management, and event execution► Researched, compiled, and analyzed the media landscape as it pertained to core gaming influencers and outlets► Facilitated print and online feature stories in Engadget, IGN, and Game Informer among others► Supported major industry shows, including E3, gamescom and CES, as manager of briefing books for executive spokespeople, staffing of games spokesperson interviews, and supporting of Showcase events for consumers and media► Developed tailored media lists to inform outreach and event targets, focusing on influential press from technology, business, entertainment, and consumer outlets► Worked across various agency and Microsoft teams to support Xbox and Xbox Game Studios in day-to-day activities and announcements, including updates to the Xbox portfolio, hardware, and brand► Presented campaigns, ideas, and post-event/announcement analysis to senior team members, clients, and partnering agencies/stakeholders► Crafted blog posts, tweets, and other materials to announce and amplify key beats

Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada

Vancouver, Canada Area

Vancouver, Canada Area

Vancouver, Canada Area

► Drafted and edited internal communications for multiple audiences including employee newsletter, leadership messages, corporate presentations, and reports► Managed and maintained internal corporate communications channels, including the employee Intranet platform and news engine, various email accounts, and news editorial calendar► Coordinated and communicated special events and meetings including Town Hall meetings and other corporate events► Contributed to content creation, agenda planning, and event management► Provided support for Corporate initiatives, including award submissions, executive profiles, external presentations, and more► Responsible for daily media relations support through research, story generation, media pitching, writing press releases, and editing media materials► Provided support for Issues Management, Public Relations campaigns, and Crisis Communications plans ► Coordinated and cascaded weekly and monthly media monitoring systems and reports, managing relationships with appropriate contacts at monitoring agencies, and actively monitoring coverage as necessary► Compiled insights and provided analysis to the communications team from weekly monitoring metrics and press reviews

Vancouver, Canada Area

► Wrote compelling content copy for Product Descriptions, Brand Stores, Blogs, Advertising Channels, and Feature Product Articles► Adapted to using brand voice, messaging, and tone with regards to creating unique content► Developed a solid understanding of Search Engine Optimization (SEO) practices and principles to gain better traction with written content ► Acted as moderator for several team meetings, leading collaborative discussions to develop original creative content and find solutions for any obstacles ► Responsible for communicating and presenting concepts to team and senior leaders

Post-Degree Certificate, Public Relations

Post-Degree Certificate, Journalism

Activities and Societies: Dean's List Reporter and section editor with the Calgary Journal, community paper produced and distributed.

Bachelor Of Arts, English Literature

Focus on Canadian and British Literature