Denise Keyes is the founder emeritus of Georgetown University’s Center for Social Impact Communication and Division of Professional Communications. In this role, she developed and taught the first Cause Consulting class in 2007, which served as the catalyst for the launch of the Center the following year. Denise pioneered the Center’s approach to applied research by forging numerous industry partnerships and securing funding from corporations and foundations.
Denise introduced the concept of the blur in 2011 and it became the guiding principle for the silo-busting approach adopted by the Division of Professional Communications, and ultimately the Center. Her vision was to integrate the work of Center across all the master’s programs in the Division. With the growth of the Division and the expansion of the Center’s mission, she has realized that dream and set the course for the future with a strong management team.
Denise’s own experience in creating positive integrated social impact through marketing communications spans sectors, including corporate brands and government agencies, innovative nonprofits and large foundations. She has designed signature cause marketing programs for Fortune 100 companies, developed award-winning social marketing campaigns, and crafted strategic corporate partnerships while serving in senior management roles at industry-leading agencies, including Cone and Fleishman-Hillard. She began her career in advertising, working in New York and London at firms such as Ogilvy and Mather on global consumer brands.
In addition to her work at Georgetown, Denise is a strategy consultant and leadership coach, working with creative firms, corporations, and nonprofits. She is a Gallup Certified StrengthsFinders Coach and is a professionally trained meditation teacher.