Today we’d like to introduce you to Hannah Mooney Mack.
Hi Hannah, so excited to have you with us today. What can you tell us about your story?
I wanted to be the president when I grew up – all the way until I got to college. I did debate club and Model UN in high school, got a scholarship to go to Creighton University and studied pre-law through the political science program, and ended up taking a semester ‘abroad’ but went to Washington D.C. instead of a foreign country even though it felt like the same thing. I didn’t get a legal internship though; I was told I wasn’t going to get an internship due to my lack of pedigree (read: not Ivy League) and my parents didn’t know enough people for me to be relevant. It was devastating, but instead of a legal internship, I got an offer to be in the communications shop for the National Committee of a political party. I was hooked. Communications was the root of what I had always wanted to do – tell compelling stories that changes people’s lives for the better – but this time it was in politics directly and not in the legal field.
I kept my major but went back to DC again the next summer and eventually landed a job in the U.S. Senate right out of college in 2011 for a U.S. Senator from Pennsylvania. I was his press assistant, but left the role in a year due to the fact that I knew I wanted to work more and with a faster pace than Congress, so I joined a political communications firm that did phone advocacy and get-out-the-vote efforts. It was basically robocalls though before everyone hated them. That taught me how to work in environments that are highly regulated (telecomm) and also for people and industries who have a lot on the line. I got burned out from that role because of the pace, and needed a goldilocks options, so I went to PhRMA, the brand pharmaceutical trade association for the top 30+ brand pharma companies in the world. I rose through the ranks there by building out a role that had not existed before leading the digital/social content development strategy for the org and handling all agency partners who developed content and assets. I was a brand steward and also a core member of the creative public affairs team, and grew with the org from 13 to 26 people in the 6 years I was there. From there, I left at the end of the pandemic to head to a B2B life sciences supplier to pharma and biotech to build the communications and marketing function for their highest growing business unit (of 4 business units). Within the 3 years I was there, I replicated and evolved that work from the original business unit I built up but also acquired the others and standardized the campaign frameworks, internal communications, and external communications for leadership as well.
That brings us to today, where I willingly left a great job on a great team at a great company to see if I could do what I did for them for smaller life science companies who don’t have the luxury of hiring executive level communications and marketing talent. I help these organizations hone their brand and leader stories to speed up their market growth and also serve as a wide angle lens for their overall business strategy from a communications and marketing angle. Because I come from the pharma/life science B2B space with a previous background in political communications, explaining the complex simply and operating in lean, fast-paced teams are my two sweet spots so this target customer profile fits well with my natural disposition for start-up environments. The firm launched in August 2024, and I am in the thick of building it as we speak!
Would you say it’s been a smooth road, and if not what are some of the biggest challenges you’ve faced along the way?
Well, the firm just launched, and I have to admit there are days where I think I have made a colossal mistake, but mostly, I am tremendously proud of my ability to step out on my own. As for previously in my career, I firmly believe I was exactly where I needed to be at that exact moment in time. I used to spend a lot of my life carefully plotting each and every move for fear of making a mistake, and once I left college, I realized that no one knows what they’re doing so I should probably lighten up and take life’s blows one at a time and laugh my way to the next thing. That attitude has served me quite well, and I don’t intent to change that perspective anytime soon.
Can you tell our readers more about what you do and what you think sets you apart from others?
I have to be honest: the thing I am exceptional at is getting things done and finding time to be creative while doing it. It’s become obvious to my throughout the course of my career that most people struggle to be consistent and follow through. Doing what you say you’re going to do, and inserting some creativity and thinking differently about seemingly rote things is rare. I do that naturally, so I feel like my jobs have almost always felt like I had a cheat code. Things seemed easier for me than for other people – but it’s because I always finished what I started and I always had a wacky idea that bucked the status quo. It made me dependable and also interesting – which I’ve come to find out is an unbeatable combo.
What was your favorite childhood memory?
Something that sticks in my brain clear as day was when thread friendship bracelets were a thing (remember those?). I used babysitting money to buy different color thread and made these woven friendship bracelets because I knew they were popular, I was decent at making them, and no one else was selling them in our neighborhood. I would imagine this was the start of my entrepreneurial beginnings, but I also have had expensive taste since I can remember so making money and finding creative ways to do so was my jam. Bracelets were the start – complex life science storytelling and business strategy development is the now.
Contact Info:
- Website: https://www.mooneymackconsulting.com
- LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/hannahmooneymack/
- Other: https://www.linkedin.com/company/mooneymackconsulting/
