About Ann Higgins
From the headline-grabbing corporate scandals of Enron and WorldCom, to the fall-out from Sarbannes-Oxley, it’s no secret that the business world has been plagued with corporate scandals in recent years. Bothered by the “don’t-ask-don’t-tell” method of many businesses and public relations firms, I set out to create a new type of communications firm: an ethically focused, socially responsible practice which represents organizations, ideas, people and companies that enhance the human condition and operate within a strongly principled framework. I launched the firm, Utopia Communications, in 2006.
Taking my mission one step further to help others in the industry, I became the first (and only) officially endorsed trainer of Trust Inc.’s LEAP methodology for values based leadership in the United States. I routinely offer this workshop to public relations practitioners in agencies and corporate settings.
I hold a Bachelor of Science degree in Public Relations and hope to receive my Master of Science degree in Communications Management from Syracuse University sometime in the near future. I’ve made ethics the focus of my capstone project.
Sometimes described as an overachiever, I’m a member of the Public Relations Society of America’s prestigious Counselors Academy and a member of its executive committee, as well as past Chair of the 2006 national conference • I sits on the board of the PRSA of NJ • Am a member of the Jersey Shore PR and Advertising Association • Am an active Rotarian • A former publicity committee member of the NY-International Association of Business Communicators • Former public relations chair for the New Jersey Association of Women Business Owners • Honored in 2000 by Business News New Jersey as one of State’s “Top 40 Under 40.”
I’ve been fortunate in that I’ve been profiled and quoted on national radio and television, as well as in publications such as Dividends, Self-Employed Professional, Entrepreneur, Executive Female, Working Woman Magazine, PR Week and Working Mother, among others, in relation to my expertise in marketing communications and professional accomplishments. I’m also an editorial advisory panelist for Working Mother and USA Today.
