Meg O’Grady, a leading expert on creating marketing and outreach programs for the military community, has joined Crosby Marketing Communications as Executive Vice President, Military and Veterans Practice Leader.
Drawing upon her 25 years of experience as a marketer, military spouse and national advocate, O’Grady will lead Crosby teams to create communications campaigns and strategic partnerships that help clients effectively reach active duty personnel, veterans, military spouses and families. She will support major programs that Crosby conducts for the Department of Defense, Department of Veterans Affairs and DAV (Disabled American Veterans).
Over the course of her career, O’Grady has developed expertise working with the Department of Defense, Fortune 500 companies, nonprofit organizations and institutions of higher education. She joins the Crosby team from Kaplan Higher Education, where she served as the Vice President of Military and Public Sector Solutions.
Earlier in her career, as a senior leader in the Department of Defense, she was instrumental in launching the Spouse Education and Career Program, including the Military Spouse Employment Partnership, whose 390 employer partners such as Bank of America, Comcast, 3M and Amazon have hired more than 134,000 military spouses. During her tenure with the U.S. Army, she worked with Army Family Advocacy, Army Education, the Army Career and Alumni Program, and was the first training officer for the Army’s Wounded Warrior Program, AW2. She also spearheaded the development of the Coalition for Veteran Owned Business for First Data Corporation in partnership with Syracuse University’s Institute for Veterans and Military Families, bringing together industry leaders including American Express, Disney, Lockheed Martin, Walmart and others to grow and support veteran-owned businesses.
“Meg has deep roots in the military community and understands its special nuances, needs and networks,” said Crosby president Raymond Crosby. “Her knowledge and insights will be valuable to helping clients authentically connect with this audience relating to health, education, employment and quality of life programs.”
O’Grady was a member of the class of 1990 at the United States Military Academy at West Point, where she was an All-American swimmer and, in 2002, earned a Master of Education degree from National Louis University. She is an active volunteer, serving on the boards of the Armed Services YMCA, the PsychArmor Institute and Operation Job Ready Vets. In 2017, she was one of four nominees for the U.S. Chamber of Commerce’s Hiring Our Heroes program’s Colonel Michael Endres Leadership Award for Individual Excellence in Veteran Employment.
