Rachel Ford Hutman is the Founder and CEO of Ford Hutman Media. With 15+ years of communications experience at leading global PR agencies and a senior comms role at IBM, she created the agency to provide industry-leading media relations and thought leadership to elite life science companies across the globe. Clients range from venture-backed startups to large cap public companies. Rachel started her career as a reporter and excels at working with the media to bring life science stories to life while still making them accessible to stakeholders.

During her career, Rachel has led communications for the world’s biggest therapies and medical technologies of all time, including the first RNAi therapy (Alnylam’s ONPATTRO), the first technology in the world to personalize insulin 24 hrs. a day (Medtronic’s MiniMed 670G), IBM’s AI launch into healthcare (Watson Health), the first therapy for DMD (Sarepta’s EXONDYS 51), and Google’s sister life science company (Verily). She has counseled some of the most well-known health/ technology organizations and developed communications strategies for the world’s biggest brands (Verily, Johnson & Johnson, Medtronic, Pfizer, IBM, Best Buy, Takeda, Sanofi, Shire, Brigham & Women’s, NHS).

Rachel is consistently leveraging her long-standing relationships with global agenda-setting reporters on behalf of clients including CNBC, FOX Business, BBC, AP, Reuters, Bloomberg, The Today Show, Newsweek, Financial Times, Fast Company, TIME, Wired, Forbes, WSJ, NYTs, and key health trades like Modern Healthcare, Becker’s Hospital Review, Digital Health Journal, GenomeWeb, BioWorld, Tech Republic, FierceBiotech, Endpoints, Drug Discovery Today and many more. Rachel also has investor and analyst relations experience that adds to her ability to highlight market dynamics.

Named a Power Woman of San Diego 2020 and PRSA’s PR Professional of the Year in 2011, Rachel has built a reputation for her positive energy, creativity and humor. She received her MA in communications and media studies at San Diego State University and her BA in English/ History from University of Maryland, Baltimore County. Rachel has presented on communications strategy to PR News, PR Week, The International PR Research Conference, NC State and San Diego State University.

Mike oversees FHM's financial growth and business operations. Prior to his current role, Mike worked in the insurance industry where he held leadership positions in Southern California. Known for his steady direction and easy going personality, Mike is adept at developing business strategies that lead to growth. He grew up just north of the Nation's capital in Rockville, MD and received his B.A. in Communications from Towson University. When he is not working, Mike can be found surfing, playing guitar or camping with his son. Mike was recently selected as a finalist in the San Diego Business Journal's annual CFO of The Year awards. He transitioned to Chief Operations Officer in 2023 as his responsibilities expanded.

Katie has 20+ years of experience on both the corporate and agency sides of healthcare- and technology-focused communications. She takes pride in helping clients of all sizes creatively and consistently share their vision and value proposition to the right audiences through integrated storytelling.

Prior to consulting, Katie served in variety of leadership roles at PR agencies. There, she provided corporate communications and executive thought leadership strategy for digital health and traditional healthcare companies ranging from Aetna and McKesson to Surescripts and Cedar. As part of this work, she has secured notable relationships and client coverage in publications such as Bloomberg, Business Insider, Harvard Business Review, FastCompany and more.

Prior to agency life, Katie worked in-house with the corporate communications team at Nuance Healthcare. She lives just outside of Boston, Mass. and enjoys time with her 5-year-old, Cecilia, and black Labrador, Emmet.

Greg is a senior communications strategist who for more than 20 years has specialized in working with innovators in the life sciences and healthcare sectors. His specializations include corporate communications, investor communications, media strategy, executive thought leadership and R&D communications.

During his career, Greg has held senior leadership positions at several life sciences focused consulting firms. As a Senior Vice President at Ogilvy Health, Greg served as a strategic communications partner to a diverse group of clients, including public and private biotechs, global pharma companies, and service providers to the life sciences. His work included helping clients to establish a compelling brand identity, reach and influence key opinion leaders, and maximize the impact of clinical and regulatory milestones.

Greg also previously served as a Senior Vice President at Verge Scientific Communications, where he led client engagements for a roster of established and emerging life science innovators as well as health-focused venture capital firms. Earlier in his career, Greg served as a director at The Hubbell Group, where he led work with the national healthcare and life science practices of PwC.

Over his career, Greg has gained a wealth of experience working with pioneers focused on various disease areas and modalities, including genomic medicine, neurology, oncology and rare diseases, as well as medical devices and diagnostics.

Greg received his Bachelor of Arts degree in Political Science from Providence College.

Paul Kidwell is a Boston-based, independent public relations/patient advocacy consultant providing media relations and patient engagement support for biopharmaceutical companies, and a rare disease podcaster.

Paul has more than 20 years of corporate and agency communications experience within the life science sector. During this time Paul has provided integrated public relations support for product launches, FDA approvals, national and international media campaigns, patient advocacy programs, supported major industry conferences, medical meetings and trade shows, and developed media strategies for the placement of stories in global top tier business and trade media.

Paul’s patient advocacy experience is extensive and for over a decade he has developed and supported patient engagement programs for biotech companies that includes patient ambassador programs, patient/caregiver/oncology nurse leadership councils, as well as patient storytelling. In 2013, Paul was part of the creators of the Patient Advocacy Summit in conjunction with MassBio; which is an event that focuses on the intersection of patient advocacy and the biotech industry, and features keynote presentations, panel discussions, case studies, and live patient storytelling.

Paul holds a master’s degree in Public Relations from Boston University.

Heather Johnson is a San Francisco Bay Area-based content strategist and communications writer who provides content marketing, thought leadership, and brand messaging for medical device, drug development, and healthcare companies.

With more than 25 years of professional experience spanning journalism, communications, and marketing, Heather has created everything from five-word taglines to 350-page books. As an independent consultant, she has worked with companies including Medline, IQVIA MedTech, 3M spinoff Solventum, St. Jude Children's Research Hospital, Veeva, and Medpace. She also develops custom content for the Fierce network and Industry Dive publications.

An Akron, Ohio native who grew up in middle Tennessee, Heather has lived in Oakland, California, since 2003. She enjoys running along the East Bay trails, volunteering with CatTown Oakland, and spending time with good friends.

Based in Southern California, Matt Clawson brings more than 30 years of expertise in the investor relations and corporate communications fields, as well as deep experience in medical technology and diagnostics. Matt founded Life Capital Partners, a strategic IR firm that provides counsel and financial comms to both top tier and venture backed private companies in the life science industry.

Matt has served as Managing Director, IR at Pure Communications, Partner at Allen & Caron, Inc., and Senior Advisor of IR at W2O Group. Matt has his MBA from SF State University and his BA in English from UCLA. When Matt isn’t providing strategic IR counsel, you can find him on a beach in So Cal enjoying a beer.

Josh Baxt has been a science and healthcare writer for more than 25 years, working at Scripps Health and the Sanford Burnham Prebys Medical Discovery Institute before becoming a consultant in 2011. He covers a wide range of topics, including molecular biology, genomics, drug discovery, emerging medical technologies and public policy. He writes articles, thought leadership pieces, web copy, news releases and white papers and excels at translating scientific jargon into lay-friendly text.

Zara Al-Zubaidy is an account executive at Ford Hutman Media, where she supports clients with research, media engagement, and thought leadership. With a degree in communications and a unique background in microbiology research and development, she brings a multidisciplinary perspective to her early career in public relations. Zara also has experience working with startups, which has given her an appreciation for working closely with small, collaborative teams. Outside of work, she enjoys all things outdoors – especially snowboarding – as well as attending concerts, going to Golden State Warriors games with her brother, spending time at the beach, and playing with her cat.