SBS Comms

I was lucky to have the chance to sit down with award-winning investor Tasneem Dohadwala from Excelestar Ventures LLC and discuss her amazing career, and outlook on the startup market. Some choice quotes from our conversation: ▶ On her push to promote women in the workplace: "In many ways things have changed; there are so many more female-focused funds. While the numbers are still small in terms of the amount of female-led startups, there are more people looking to invest..." ▶ On Excelestar Ventures: “When we’re doing our due diligence, we’re looking to see whether the company has seen a gap in the market and then innovated, creating a dramatic innovation to address that gap.” ▶ On generative AI: “You have to be really careful with AI, because everybody's trying to figure out a way to weave it into their story. Do I think that AI in general is going to dramatically change multiple market landscapes? Sure. Am I changing my investment thesis? No.” ▶ On her outlook for the year: “We're continuing to see relative tightness in 2024. I think that valuations have continued to stay at that lower range, and are not creeping up in my opinion.” Click below to read more, and as always, thanks to Startup Boston for publishing this one. https://lnkd.in/eFMyPrr2

"Traditional media always finds a way to bounce back." 📺 Our newest edition of Briefing Notes, authored by Randall Woods, explores how traditional media is regaining its influence in the 2024 U.S. election. Check out the full piece for a look into the power shift from social media to mainstream outlets and what this means for the future of political campaigns. 🇺🇸 https://lnkd.in/gUrUwkpf

📣 While the country is deciding which President will guide its future, there's no debate on who will lead ours. Join us in congratulating our first President, Claudia Traverso! Over the past six years, Claudia has been instrumental to our evolution, joining us when we were still in our infancy.  She can be credited with growing our team to more than 40 people across the US, building our culture, and helping SBS mature into who we are today. Anyone who knows Claudia knows that she is a natural leader, a gifted media strategist and storyteller, and champion of all things woo woo! Cheers to the next era of SBS 🥂

This month, our employee-led SBS for Good spotlight goes to ACCESS REPRODUCTIVE JUSTICE on behalf of account coordinator Kylie Harrington. ACCESS is an abortion fund and reproductive justice organization intent on giving all individuals the resources to make their own decisions about if, when, and how they start their families. It operates a helpline that provides emotional, financial, logistical and other resources for those in need of reproductive healthcare. The organization also focuses on the many issues that impact an individual’s ability to have self-determination around building (or not building) family, from LGBTQ liberation, to immigrant justice, to economic justice, to youth rights, and beyond. Kylie said: “I believe that bodily autonomy is a human right, and that every person deserves to have a choice in if and when they want to start a family. I deeply appreciate ACCESS’ approach to increasing access to sexual and reproductive healthcare and commitment to recognizing and fighting the systemic issues that surround it. I’m excited to contribute to an organization that directly supports the right to make empowered and dignified decisions about their health without shame or stigma for those in California and surrounding states. More than two years have passed since Roe v. Wade was overturned, and with the national state of reproductive rights looking increasingly bleak, direct action organizations like ACCESS are more important than ever."

SBS Comms 🤝 red carpet ✨📸 Recently our team attended the Fast Company Most Innovative Companies Gala in NYC and celebrated our Top 5 win in the PR and Brand Strategies category. It was a fun night in the company of some of the most creative brands today. We are so proud to be included in the first PR and Brand category! 🏆

In celebration of Pride Month, our SBS for Good spotlight goes to GenPride Seattle, selected by members of the SBS LGBTQIA+ Employee Resource Group. This Pride Month, SBS is paying homage to our Seattle roots in support of GenPride and its work to build the city’s first affordable housing community designed specifically for LGBTQAI+ seniors. The visionary project will provide 118 apartments along with a first-of-its-kind community and health services center tailored for this underserved population. Too often, LGBTQAI+ elders face discrimination, isolation, and other barriers to accessing affirmative care and housing. GenPride's development will foster an empowering, welcoming environment where seniors can age with grace and dignity. From affirming health resources to stigma-free socializing, this center will be a bedrock of support. We celebrate GenPride's tireless efforts to uplift the lives of LGBTQAI+ elders through this incredible milestone for the community.

Wishing Senior Account Manager Alexander Modiano a happy 4th anniversary with SBS! Alex's creative approach to media strategy, keen eye for aesthetics, and grounded client counsel set him apart, and we're so grateful to have him on the team. Happy anniversary, Alex! 🧘♂️ 🧢 💚

Some terrific insights in this story from ☀️Raza Shaikh at Launchpad Venture Group on angel investing in New England (plus NYC). This team has some amazing investment and exits, so I was thrilled to sit down for an interview. Raza confirms that age-old paradox that successful companies often emerge from economic downturns; as he notes, "most angels know that great companies are usually built or started in tougher times, and are more likely to succeed because they must be building something that somebody really needs." Check it out for more nuggets of wisdom, and thanks to Startup Boston for publishing the story! https://lnkd.in/gWx7quBR

Excited to share that Tomato.ai has announced two new products for call centers, created by a diverse founding team who were all born outside the U.S., bringing firsthand experience in cross-cultural communication. The new offerings include Accent Softening and Noise Cancellation 🎧 Oh, and they've extended their seed funding to $12M+! Congrats to Ofer Ronen, James Fan, and the rest of the Tomato.ai team for this innovation in customer service tech 🚀   As always, great working with Michael Nuñez at VentureBeat to share our story!

Today marks one month since I started at SBS Comms and in that short amount of time I’ve had the opportunity to attend Fast Company’s Most Innovative Companies Gala and our semi-annual Night Moves event that brings media and communications professionals together for a fun night of networking. While we are a fully remote company, it’s been great to have face-to-face time with the team these past few weeks and connecting IRL has helped me seamlessly transition into my new role. I’m excited to grow and learn from the team at SBS Comms !