SMPRophets.

Sidney Maxwell Public Relations would not exist without the support and guidance of some very wise and important people; we call them SMPRophets.

Michael Kahn, Performics
It is quite the rare occasion when a client connects with an agency so deeply that the agency thinks of the client as an extension of the agency and not the other way around.

But Michael Kahn follows to the beat of a different drummer; due to our mutual efforts we integrated the full scope of The SMPR Model when he worked at Socrates. Concurrently, we can point to several business development successes within the organization

Aleen Bayard, MarketZing
marketZing.org

Along with being one of the founder’s PR mentors, Aleen is one of the best sounding boards in the industry; she is one of the few people on this earth that we think everyone should get to know.

In order to be successful in this industry you need strong guidance, someone with sound reasoning and someone who understands how you operate. Aleen’s success is built on understanding this all too well, and she is a model for strong leadership.

Darrell Jursa — Liquid Intelligence
www.liquidintelligence.com

Darrell's organization helps beverage companies reap sources of value to drive revenues forward. His team is tireless and passionate about drinking beverages, but they have achieved status in their industry because they show that industry norms aren't always best because "everyone else does it." Like the Sidney Maxwell team, Liquid Intelligence shows that it's OK to think differently. Or put in beverage terms, we don't think of the glass as half-empty or half-full. We think of there being two glasses to fill.

Lynnette Khalfani
Investing Success: How to Conquer 30 Costly Mistakes & Multiply Your Wealth!
www.investingsuccess.net

A former Wall Street Journal reporter for CNBC and a nationally respected personal finance expert, Lynnette is a Sidney Maxwell friend and one of our strongest media contacts. Lynnette bucked all of the “journalist turned author” trends and started her own publishing company, wrote her own book (click on the Web site to find out how to get one) and put the pedal to the metal to leverage her contacts in the media world. Plus, she hired us to help out with her book tour.

At Sidney Maxwell, we like being a part of these groundbreaking opportunities because it reminds us that our business is all about relationships.

Stan Lewin — LKH&S
www.lkhs.com

Quite simply, Sidney Maxwell Public Relations wouldn’t exist without Stan. Michael Shmarak became friends with Stan in 2002 after LKH&S hired him for a freelance project. But there was a special something that clicked between the two of them as well as with all of the agency’s employees that has grown over time. Sidney Maxwell shares space with LKH&S, and we work together to find new business avenues for both agencies to grow.

But Stan is more than a professional associate. He is a business counselor, a great strategist and most importantly understands the value of family. At Sidney Maxwell, we want our people to take care of family needs as strongly as they take care of clients. We look for people who care about family life because it makes working together as a business unit so much better—for clients and for each other.

Peter Nasca — Peter Nasca Associates
www.pnapr.com

Peter owns and operates a public relations agency in Miami while living here in Chicago. Some of Peter’s best advice sits on a wall in our office—the highs in this business are high; the lows in this business are low. It’s your job to make the low things high. In all of our endeavors, we take Peter’s advice to heart, and thank him for it by doing everything we can to help our clients achieve the highs that are out there.

Barry Libert — Shared Insights
An author, business strategist and former client contact, Barry is considered a "futurist" because he showed how immense sources of business value can be found when you look beyond financial statements. Barry's teachings show that rules are meant to be broken, especially in business, and all it takes is one person to stand up as the voice of change. It might not always be a popular decision, but it makes people think about what they do. Sidney Maxwell Public Relations was started because we thought the standard public relations model could use a few tweaks. It's our hope that, as we grow, that we will lead our own model of growth as opposed to following the leader.