Speakers

Michael Gonda

Senior Vice President, Chief Impact Officer of North America, McDonald’s USA

Michael Gonda is the Senior Vice President and Chief Impact Officer of North America for McDonald's. In this role, Michael leads efforts to drive one holistic brand strategy across Communications, Government Relations, Sustainability & ESG and Philanthropy in the U.S. and Canada. Together, the teams he oversees work to engage stakeholders and communities to protect and enhance the McDonald’s brand. 

Prior to his current position, Michael served on the McDonald’s global senior leadership team as Global Chief Communications Officer, where he was responsible for increasing brand trust and communicating the vision and values of the business. In this role, Michael oversaw some of the most critical work for the business—including communications management around the COVID-19 pandemic, the launch of the Accelerating the Arches strategy and the development of the company’s purpose, mission and values. Further, Michael developed strategies and creative content to make McDonald’s one of the most admired brands in the world, contributing to an unprecedented increase in positive brand sentiment, employee engagement and business growth. 

Before joining McDonald's, Michael held the role of Senior Vice President of Corporate Affairs at Chobani, where he solidified brand identity and recognition, earning certifications like “Great Place to Work,” Fortune’s “Change the World” and Fast Company’s “25 Brands that Matter Now”. Michael began his career as a reporter and earned a BA with Honors from Brown University. 

Michael has been consistently recognized for his personal leadership and the accomplishments of the teams he oversees. PRWeek named him Global Professional of the Year and one of the 50 most powerful leaders in the industry. He has also been recognized by PRovoke Influence and Business Insider as one of the 100 most influential in-house corporate affairs professionals. 

Michael currently serves as the co-executive sponsor of McDonald's Black Employee Network, BGLDN (pronounced Be Golden), where he is committed to driving representation, equity and inclusion by putting action to allyship.  

He lives in Chicago with his wife, Emma and two children Lazlo and Indie.

Paul Holmes

Founder & Chair, PRovoke Media

Paul Holmes, founder and chair of PRovoke Media, has been writing about public relations for more than 25 years. Paul began his career in local newspapers in the north of England and also worked for a newspaper group in South London before joining PR Week as news editor in 1985.

In 1987 he moved to New York to launch the short-lived US edition of that publication, and after that project came to an inglorious end worked with Adweek and Adweek’s Marketing Week for a year.

In 1989, he launched his own company, initially publishing Inside PR, and later Reputation Management magazine, both focused on providing analysis of critical trends and issues in the public relations industry. He created the annual Public Relations Agency Report Card, which included profiles of the leading PR firms in the US, and the Creativity in Public Relations Awards, which grew to become the largest in North America.

Early in 2000, Holmes launched The Holmes Group, which provides knowledge and insight to public relations professionals across a variety of platforms, including a website, an e-newsletter, events, printed reports, research and consulting assignments, and the SABRE Awards competition. The group’s flagship title, PRovoke Media (p/k/a The Holmes Report), covers the public relations business in the Americas, EMEA (Europe, the Middle East and Africa) and the Asia-Pacific region. In 2011, Paul was inducted into the ICCO Hall of Fame.

Diana Marszalek

Senior Reporter, PRovoke Media