During her 25 year Washington, DC career, Laurie worked with US/International Governments & Fortune 500 clients on counterterrorism, defense/aerospace, public relations, government/international affairs, trade policy, public diplomacy, strategic communications & marketing. She managed complex, high profile, crisis & international public affairs issues.
As the Strategic Communications Advisor to the US Army’s Human Terrain System (HTS), she led all strategic/crisis communications & public affairs. HTS embedded social scientists with Brigade Commanders in Iraq & Afghanistan which provided field commanders with an understanding of the local population & culture to assist their operational requirements.
Spearheading a creative team, she won a $100 million US Special Operations Command psychological operations campaign contract. This campaign was to counter militant Islamic propaganda through creative information campaigns against terrorists in Iraq, Afghanistan & worldwide.
While working with Burson-Marsteller, Cassidy & Associates, & Burdeshaw Associates, she represented Embraer, Rolls-Royce North America, Dornier Seaplane Company, FNSS Defense Systems, DRS Technologies, Development Alternatives International (DAI), United Space Alliance, AgustaWestland’s EH101 Program & American Airlines. At the Aerospace Industries Association (AIA), Laurie represented over 60 US corporations including Boeing, GE Aircraft Engines, United Technologies, Raytheon, Honeywell, AlliedSignal, Gulfstream, NorthropGrumman, Textron & Lockheed Martin on international aerospace & defense trade issues. She also worked for the Korean Embassy.
At Bell-Boeing, Laurie restored program confidence in the V-22 “Osprey” which resulted in full rate production & increased DoD/international procurement. For the US space shuttle, she successfully lobbied for $500 million in NASA safety upgrades. Through a crisis communications campaign, Laurie helped avert a DoJ antitrust lawsuit against American Airlines. She managed crisis communications for Embraer on the Canada/Brazil WTO aircraft subsidies case & brought the first US Commerce Department Aerospace Trade Mission to Brazil. She also positioned the EH101 as a US made helicopter for DoD & Coast Guard procurement requirements.
Laurie graduated from the University of Chicago with an M.A. in International Relations. She received her undergraduate degree from Lafayette College.