Cincinnati, OH – March 25, 2010 – The Gilchrist Group™, a Greater Cincinnati-based strategic business and communications consulting firm, has garnered two top industry awards from the Public Relations Society of America (PRSA).

The Gilchrist Group was honored with a Diamond Award from PRSA’s East Central District for the launch of Otterbein Homes’ newest skilled nursing care and rehabilitation small house neighborhood – Avalon by Otterbein at Maineville in Hamilton Township. This is both the second time that Otterbein has partnered with the Gilchrist Group on a neighborhood launch and that the work has won top awards.

“Pam Gilchrist’s knowledge and communications expertise has been extremely valuable to our organization. She and her team have provided strategic guidance on media relations and issues management. We truly appreciate her expert knowledge and feel blessed having her as a trusted partner,” said Gary Horning, vice president of marketing, Otterbein Homes, Inc.

Additionally, Gilchrist Group won the “Best in Show” campaign award and a top research category award at the PRSA Cincinnati Chapter’s Blacksmith Awards. The award was given for the firm’s Communications Effectiveness Research for the Greater Cincinnati Health Council.

“Best-practice organizations build communications benchmarks into their strategic plans. Our work with the Health Council established a solid baseline for future measurement and outlined a series of recommendations to align all communications to drive member engagement and achieve strategic objectives,” said Pamela Gilchrist, MA, APR, chief strategist and CEO at the Gilchrist Group.

The Gilchrist Group conducted a communications audit, a series of in-depth interviews and teamed with R.L. Repass and Partners for development of an online survey tool. The findings of the research are guiding alignment of all communications for the Health Council. “We were extremely pleased with the outcome of the work and feel we have a solid path to move forward in our journey,” said Nancy Strassel, senior vice president at the Health Council.

“The feedback that we receive from the independent judges is validation that we continue to provide a high-level of excellence and impact to our clients,” said Gilchrist who was named 2009 PRSA Professional-of-the-Year. Independent judges from the Houston PRSA Chapter had this to say about the research: “An excellent example of how communications research should be conducted! Very thorough. Execution clearly defined and well executed. Excellent research.”

About The Gilchrist Group:
Gilchrist Group™ is a strategic business and communications consulting firm that works with organizations experiencing times of dramatic growth and change in three key areas: business strategy, executive leadership and high impact communications. By focusing on influence and engagement, the firm brings Fortune 500 expertise in areas such as: strategic road maps; next level leadership development; change management; communications research; best practice and gap analysis; go-to-market plans, and Marketing|PR|Social integration. Chief Strategist and CEO Pamela Gilchrist is also a frequently requested speaker at corporate and industry conferences. Founded in 1999 as PR~Link Public Relations, the international award-winning firm serves clients across the country in a wide-range of industries including: financial services, healthcare, technology, manufacturing, engineering, government and not-for-profit.

To learn how your organization can benefit from the firm’s strategic planning, leadership develop and high impact communications, contact Pam Gilchrist at: pgilchrist@gilchristgroup.com or call 859-431-9090.

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