Hailley Griffis

Head of Design

Raleigh, North Carolina, United States13 yrs 8 mos experience

Most Likely To SwitchHighly Stable

Key Highlights

Expert in transforming complex ideas into clear stories.
Developed major studies on remote work and equal pay.
Experienced public speaker at high-profile industry events.

Stackforce AI infers this person is a SaaS communications expert with a strong focus on public relations and content strategy.

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Skills

Other Skills

Budget ManagementCorporate CommunicationsCrisis CommunicationsCustomer ServiceDigital MarketingEvent ManagementLeadershipMarketing StrategyNewslettersOnline MarketingPublic RelationsPublic SpeakingSEOSocial NetworkingStrategic Planning

About

Growing up, after quickly realizing that becoming an astronaut was not for me, I always wanted to be a writer. Storytelling was in my nature — I came up with stories with my siblings and spent weekends drafting future books. That childhood passion evolved into my defining professional skill: transforming complex ideas into clear, approachable stories that resonate with people. My approach centers on simplifying the complicated. Whether building content teams from the ground up or developing brand marketing strategies, I focus on creating sustainable outcomes that grow over time — just like a good story builds chapter by chapter. Though my younger self might balk that my stories these days aren't about superheroes and princesses, I find meaning in helping others shortcut the learning curve in their own journey through my writing on career growth, self-improvement, social media, and marketing. My writing has appeared in Fast Company, Time Magazine, Entrepreneur, and Built In, and I've spoken at events including Facebook's Communities Summit, Fast Company's Innovation Festival, and several events for the U.S. Chamber of Commerce. Feel free to reach out through my website if you'd like to get in touch about partnerships or speaking engagements: http://www.hailleygriffis.com/contact/

Experience

Buffer

4 roles

Head of Communications and Content

Aug 2021 – Present · 4 yrs 7 mos

Head of Communications

Apr 2020 – Aug 2021 · 1 yr 4 mos

Head of Public Relations

Promoted

Sep 2018 – Apr 2020 · 1 yr 7 mos

Charged with setting the strategy for public relations at Buffer and being a spokesperson for Buffer's culture and product to the media and public. Through my work, Buffer's culture and product are consistently featured in prominent news outlets, including the New York Times, The Wall Street Journal, Business Insider, Forbes, and TechCrunch.
Created two of Buffer's biggest annual studies: the State of Remote Work and Buffer's transparent equal pay analysis.

Public Relations Manager

Feb 2016 – Sep 2018 · 2 yrs 7 mos

As Buffer's first public relations hire, I strategically built strong media relationships. My work was focused on consistently landing Buffer impactful media mentions by developing key contacts at top-tier publications, working with our product and people teams to release company news, and advancing data studies to place strong messages aligned with Buffer's brand and vision.

Built in

Expert Contributor

Jun 2020 – Feb 2023 · 2 yrs 8 mos

As an expert contributor at Built In, I contributed long-form articles with opinions, advice, and insights related to public relations, remote work, and career progress.

Makeworkwork

Co Host

Oct 2017 – Jan 2024 · 6 yrs 3 mos

Co-host of a podcast about 'the work around the work' including career growth, creative work, and striving to be better. Myke Hurley, co-founder of the independent podcasting network Relay FM, has mentored our podcast since 2020. We have listeners in over 60 countries and have reached #1 on the Careers chart on Apple Podcast in Iceland, although over 50% of our listeners are in the United States.

Getaround

Communications Coordinator

Jan 2015 – Jan 2016 · 1 yr · San Francisco Bay Area

Focused on using social media and press mentions to generate positive brand awareness. Working at a fast-growing startup, I wore multiple hats. In addition to helping with press, I headed up event planning for launching in new markets, ran email marketing campaigns, coordinated speaking engagements for the executive team, and assisted as a local marketing manager as needed.
Developed and implemented a public relations strategy for upcoming announcements, campaigns, and launches, helping to secure press in local markets and coordinate key messaging and interviews.
Planned and executed launch events in Portland, Oakland, D.C., and Chicago. Securing the attendance of over 1,000 community members in Chicago and 2,000 in Washington, D.C.
Developed and implemented an organic social media strategy to engage all active markets using Twitter, Facebook, LinkedIn, and Instagram.

Self-employed

Communications Consultant

Aug 2012 – Jan 2015 · 2 yrs 5 mos · Remote

Working on a freelance and contract basis with individuals and agencies to develop and execute communications and content strategies across various media to tell their story and help meet their goals.
Generated French media coverage for a client of InMedia's, a public relations agency, in major media in Quebec, including La Presse, Les Affaires, and CBC Radio Canada — all key outlets for their client.
Gained media coverage of a local activist's election to a global organization as their new ambassador, most successfully landing a TV interview on CTV Morning News.
Increased website traffic by 50% in four months for Big Like, a marketing agency, through content marketing and syndication. Succeeded in having multiple posts I wrote for the Big Like blog appear on Social Media Today, linking back to the original piece and generating earned traffic to their blog.

Fluidware

Public Relations Coordinator

Jul 2012 – Jun 2013 · 11 mos · Ottawa, Canada Area

Built public relations efforts from the ground up through daily research and outreach to reporters of interest and gathering key information in a database for regular pitching.
Implemented a consistent cadence of public relations outreach and coverage, resulting in notable press coverage in the Financial Times, StartupNorth, StartupWeekendBlog, NotableCA, TechVibes, Next Montreal, Under30CEO, Maple Butter, AppChamp, Metro Ottawa, and the Ottawa Business Journal — all key outlets for the company's customers and business relationships.
Charged with regularly writing press releases, pitch emails, and drafting guest posts to gain media coverage. Collaborated with other local startups in joint press efforts on local, national, and international coverage.