Weber Shandwick Chief Reputation Strategist Dr. Leslie Gaines-Ross Named to "In2's Innovator 25" by The Holmes Report

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Sep 06, 2013, 09:00 ET

NEW YORK, Sept. 6, 2013 /PRNewswire/ -- Weber Shandwick, one of the world's leading global public relations firms, announced today that Dr. Leslie Gaines-Ross, chief reputation strategist at Weber Shandwick, has been named to The Holmes Report's inaugural "In2's Innovator 25" list.

According to the publication, the 25 innovators profiled in the list were selected by external nominations and The Holmes Report's editorial research for challenging the industry's boundaries, elevating the role of PR within their organizations or the industry, and pushing PR into broader realms beyond media relations.

Gaines-Ross is being honored as one of the top 25 innovators in PR for being "among the first in the industry to use research to find new ways to look at old problems. For being the force behind research that is shaping how PR understands the world it operates in, from studying CEO activity on social media to niche market segments like the Professional Aunt, No Kids (PANKS). And for maintaining rigorous standards of methodology in an era when anyone with an Internet connection can conceivably conduct a survey."

"Leslie has a courageous commitment to innovation, and because of this she has undoubtedly transformed the field of reputation management," said Weber Shandwick CEO Andy Polansky. "Her relentless dedication to improving and evolving how we research, assess and shape reputation has truly made her a globally recognized thought leader, in every sense of the phrase. We are delighted for Leslie's honor and proud of her contributions to Weber Shandwick and its clients, and to the industry."

Gaines-Ross leads Weber Shandwick's global reputation management and thought leadership as well as serving as an advisor to clients on reputation issues. She is the architect of groundbreaking, award-winning research into CEO and corporate reputation. Gaines-Ross' recent thought leadership includes The Company behind the Brand: In Reputation We Trust and The Social CEO: Executives Tell All. Gaines-Ross is the author of two books, Corporate Reputation: 12 Steps to Safeguarding and Recovering Reputation and CEO Capital: A Guide to Building CEO Reputation and Company Success as well as feature articles, Reputation Warfare (Harvard Business Review) and Get Social: A Mandate for New CEOs (M.I.T. Sloan Management Review). Her blog can be found at www.reputationXchange.com or www.social4CEOs.com, and she can be followed on Twitter at @ReputationRx.

The full list of honorees can be found at The Holmes Report.

About Weber Shandwick
Weber Shandwick is a leading global public relations firm with offices in 81 countries around the world. The firm has won numerous awards for innovative approaches and creative campaigns including being named both The Holmes Report's 2012 Global Agency of the Year and the "Most Creative PR Firm in the World," based on the agency's first-place finish in its "Creative Index," as well as PR News' 2012 Digital PR Firm of the Year. Major practice areas include consumer marketing, healthcare, technology, public affairs, financial services, corporate and crisis management. The firm has deep, award-winning expertise in social media and digital marketing that helps drive engagement. Weber Shandwick is part of the Interpublic Group (NYSE: IPG). For more information, visit http://www.webershandwick.com.