President Preckwinkle Recognizes the Cook County New Media Council

President Preckwinkle has formed a New Media Council composed of marketing and social media experts who will help the County develop a digital strategy to better engage, serve, and connect with the public. The council has been tasked with providing input and feedback on the County’s on-going efforts to redesign its website. It also is expected to offer recommendations on countywide social media efforts, such as suggesting new tools and strategies, evaluating the latest platforms, and updating social media guidelines and policies. One of its first initiatives is having President Preckwinkle hold a live chat on Twitter. It will take place Wednesday, Feb. 6 at 1:00 p.m. “While I’m far from an expert in the field of new media, I understand its importance. I realize the way many people get their news and engage with their government has changed,” President Preckwinkle said. “This group of experts is teaching me to try new things and it will help my administration assess the digital state of the County. Our goal is to make our website more user-friendly and easy to navigate.” Cook County is committed to providing a more streamlined, rewarding experience by creating digital platforms that are accessible and relevant to residents’ daily lives. That includes having the most popular links appear on the homepage, having a prominent search bar, and site navigation custom-built for different audiences. “Cook County engages residents daily in deep and meaningful ways — from hospitals and jails to marriage licenses and pet vaccinations. The Cook County New Media Council is devoted to improving technology in government, and I look forward to being a part of making those moments more mobile,” said Dan X. O’Neil, Executive Director of the Smart Chicago Collaborative and a co-chair of the council. Creating a responsive web design, which is still a fairly new concept, will put Cook County ahead of the curve of other governments. The County plans to move to a mobile first platform and is weighing using text messages as a way to deliver custom content and/or links. “Taking care of any County business is often in the moment, from knowing how to pay a property tax bill to contesting a traffic ticket, residents need 24/7access to information,” said Blagica Bottigliero, founder of Zlato Digital and a co-chair of the council. “The Cook County New Media Council will be using social media to bring real-time problem solving to multiple communities. I am thrilled to be a part of these advancements.” The appointees to the New Media Advisory Council are: Brad Auerbach, Facebook Director of Marketing Solutions Blagica Bottigliero, Founder of Zlato Digital Ashton Clark, Business Process Partner at MillerCoors Dennis Dougherty, Director in New Media for Resolute Consulting Gretchen Eckland, owner and CEO of Culture22 Neal Sales-Griffin, Founder and CEO of The Starter League Daniel X. O’Neil, Executive Director of the Smart Chicago Collaborative Dylan Richard, technologist and former-Director of Engineering for Obama for America Howard A. Tullman, President & CEO of Tribeca Flashpoint Media Arts Academy Adam Wilbur, Digital Entrepreneur Michael Wiley, Vivaki Ventures Brad Auerbach, Director of Marketing Solutions, Facebook. Auerbach has more than 10 years of sales and marketing experience. Prior to joining Facebook in April 2011, he held various roles at Microsoft in their advertising & online division and CBS Radio-WXRT. Blagica Bottigliero, Founder, Zlato Digital. Bottigliero’s career spans all aspects of digital media. Prior to launching Zlato Digital, she was the global director of social media for Motorola Mobility. Her career began in the early years of online interactive marketing, at Giant Step, Orbitz and Edelman Digital. She also was a social media consultant for the Chicago 2016 bid team and has consulted for Wynn Las Vegas, Quicken Loans, Kraft, Quaker, Chevrolet, Maytag, True Value and Kimberly Clark. Ashton Clark, Business Process Partner, MillerCoors. Clark works with Tenth and Blake, the craft and import division of MillerCoors. He’s started several Internet businesses such as247Mixtapes.com, Auxify.com and UTicketIt.com. Dennis Dougherty, Director in New Media, Resolute Consulting. Dougherty is a social media specialist, directing social media strategies for Resolute clients in the corporate and non-profit sectors. He is experienced in running social media campaigns using a variety of platforms including Facebook, Twitter, You-Tube, Google+, Foursquare and other social networks. Gretchen Eckland, owner and CEO of Culture22 and Partner and Creative Director of bxbOnline and BOBtv. Eckland has developed and executed high-impact branding and creative strategies for a variety of business-to-business and business-to-consumer companies, including the National Automobile Dealers Association, American Society of Plastic Surgeons, Oracle OpenWorld, and MinExpo. Her experience also includes working on the Chicago 2016 Olympic Bid and Chicago IdeasWeek. Neal Sales-Griffin, founder and CEO of The Starter League, a beginner web design and development school. Sales-Griffin has worked and consulted with numerous startups and non-profits across multiple sectors, including venture capital firms OCA Ventures and Sandbox Industries. Daniel X. O’Neil, Executive Director of Smart Chicago Collaborative, a civic organization devoted to making lives better through technology. Prior to Smart Chicago, O’Neil was a co-founder of EveryBlock, a neighborhood news and discussion site serving 16 cities. In August 2009 EveryBlock was purchased by msnbc.com. O’Neil has advised governments on policy and developing systems such as CTA Alerts, Demolition Hold List, Citypayments.org, and other government data-related projects. Dylan Richard, technologist and former-Director of Engineering for Obama for America. Richard is the full-bearded technologist who, as Director for Engineering, quietly led the 40 engineers of Obama for America’s Technology team to victory in 2012. Previously, he helmed technical teams as Vice President of Engineering at skinnyCorp (home of threadless.com) and was a Senior Developer at Crate & Barrel. Howard A. Tullman, President & CEO of Tribeca Flashpoint Media Arts Academy. Tullman is the General Managing Partner for the Chicago High Tech Investors and an Adjunct Professor at the Kellogg Graduate School of Management. He has founded more than a dozen high-tech companies, created, developed and achieved liquidity in excess of $1 billion for a number of his businesses including CCC Information Services, Imagination Pilots, Coin Dealer Services,Tunes.com, and The Cobalt Group. Adam Wilbur, Digital Entrepreneur. Wilbur’s experience encompasses marketing research, brand strategy and integrated communications planning, with particular emphasis on developing key messaging. His combination of traditional and digital experience leverages research insights, integrated marketing strategy and technology to optimize performance and help clients reach their audiences. He has managed account strategy, planning and execution for BrightOutcome, Microsoft, Comcast, Cisco, Verizon, Blue Cross Blue Shield, Abbott Labs, Whole Foods and the American Medical Association. Michael Wiley leads Vivaki Ventures, which serves as the Publicis Groupe’s emerging media and technology identification, adoption and advisory practice. In addition, Wiley leads social media across Vivaki and is responsible for standardizing platforms and services, education and training, as well as mergers and acquisitions. Previously Wiley worked at Edelman Digital in a variety of global and domestic leadership positions and General Motors where he was Director of Global Emerging Technology and New Media.