Photo of Kelly Allen shaking hands with Mayor Time Kelly

Kelly Allen, APR
Managing Director, Senior Strategist

"PR means telling the truth and working ethically – even when all the media want is headlines and all the public wants is scapegoats. Public relations fails when there is no integrity." 

– Viv Segal of Sefin Marketing

Communicator, writer, and strategist, Kelly joined the startup marketing and strategic planning firm Q Strategies in October 2013.

Now the managing director of the Q Strategies, Kelly oversees the day-to-day operations of the firm, as well as the strategic communications for multiple clients, ranging from health care to manufacturing. 

Kelly is a hater of dull verbs, corporate speak, fake quotes, and all things abbreviated to form less than clever acronyms. Actually, she doesn’t like the clever ones either. She is a lover of the creative, the beautiful, the direct, and the bizarre; she is passionate about words and the stories they tell. When not in the office, Kelly is planning her next trip or reading about other people’s adventures.

Prior to joining Q Strategies, Kelly worked at BlueCross BlueShield of Tennessee for three years as a communications consultant. This position offered messaging and writing support for internal departments and media relations for all commercial lines of business. She also spent two years working at Waterhouse Public Relations, beginning as an assistant account manager and later serving as the director of media relations.

Kelly has been an active member of the Public Relations Society of America Lookout Chapter since 2011, and earned her Accreditation in Public Relations in 2013. She served on the board for six years and served as president in 2019.

An active volunteer, Kelly currently serves on the Governance Chair on the Board of the Women’s Fund of Greater Chattanooga and is a Nightingale Network member. For four years she has been a Trustee with the UNFoundation, and has served on the board of Africa Mission Services for 12 years, where she is currently the treasurer.

 

CONTACT INFO:

Office: 423.805.3457

SCHOOL & ACCREDITATIONS:

  • Accredited Public Relations (APR), 2013

  • Bachelor of Arts, with an emphasis in Public Relations and a minor in Journalism

  • Columbia Union College, 2004

MEMBERSHIPS/AFFILIATIONS:

  • Public Relations Society of America (PRSA)

  • UNFoundation Trustee

  • Nightingale Network Member

  • Women’s Fund of Greater Chattanooga
    Board Member - Immediate Past Board Chair

 

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