Email: steve.bowers@bairdscmc.com

Steve Bowers is a strategic communications professional with 24 years of experience in political, policy, corporate and institutional non-profit communications spanning more than a dozen industry sectors with deep concentrations in healthcare, technology, infrastructure, and economic policy. In addition to his role at Baird’s CMC, Steve is also the co-founder of Chaski Global, a strategic communications firm serving clients spanning the public, private, NGO, academic and multilateral banking sectors.

Steve’s career began in the press office of the Republican National Committee in 1990. He subsequently served in a public affairs capacity for the Defense Base Closure and Realignment Commission before moving into public policy management, including assisting with the execution of a national “grasstops” strategy to help ensure the passage of the General Agreement on Tariffs and Trade (GATT) by Congress in 1994.

He then worked on behalf of industry trade associations and coalitions, focused on wide- ranging agendas in support of the (then emerging) software industry, on behalf of multiple interests regarding initial regulation of electronic commerce and Internet taxation, and analysing state and federal environmental issues for the shareholder-owned electric power industry at the Edison Electric Institute.

In 2003, Steve was hired to direct communications initiatives for the Brookings Institution Metropolitan Policy Program. The program’s work synthesises traditional policy silos with current economic and demographic trends to further the concept of a strong and viable downtown core as key to strong metropolitan areas.  As a consultant for the past decade, Steve has served clients in healthcare, education technology, finance, heavy civil construction, real estate development, electronic commerce, and public policy management.

Most notably, he created a global communications strategy for Microsoft’s flagship $500 million education program providing resources for teachers in 114 nations. Since the launch of Chaski Global in 2013, the firm has developed data-visualization tools, communications strategies and collateral for institutions including the Inter-American Development Bank and the Millennium Challenge Corporation.