About Spark

Spark Featured as a Top 100 Women-Owned Business in the Bay Area SAN FRANCISCO, September 23, 2016 — Spark, an integrated communications agency primarily owned by women (71%), announced today the San Francisco Business Times selected the company as a Top 100 Women-Owned Business in the Bay Area. The company made the list at number 40, placing higher than several local competitors. Spark was founded by two strong female entrepreneurs, Donna Burke and Chris Hempel. Eighteen years later, Burke remains a co-owner with Hempel and CEO, Alan Soucy. Above all, Burke continues to play an active role in the agency leading several accounts, maintaining signature agency relationships and driving growth. Together, these women created a Silicon Valley agency powerhouse that fosters equality for women working in tech. In addition to working alongside female professionals as clients, Burke strives to ensure there are growth opportunities within the agency for both men and women pursuing positions at the manager level and higher. According to the Holmes Report, women make up nearly 70% of the total PR workforce, with only 30% at the manager level or higher. At Spark, however, women make up 58% of the total employee pool, and a higher-than-average 47% of the managerial force. Spark not only provides the numbers to demonstrate its commitment to cultivating gender equality in the workplace, but the agency actively attempts to encourage women’s participation as team members on each and every account. The presence of strong female leaders in the organization shapes the company culture and proprietary Agile Narrative integrated communications offerings. “As fearless females, we believe a ‘woman’s intuition’ is key to addressing the needs of clients and journalists, which continues to be an important driver of Spark’s success,” noted Burke. Prior to founding Spark, Burke gained extensive communications and marketing experience from leading organizations including Netscape, IBM, and the U.S. Olympic Committee. Working with Netscape undoubtedly gave momentum to Burke’s career, connecting her with Spark co-founder, Chris Hempel. While Burke focuses on public relations surrounding browser, Hempel assisted corporate through an IPO. With a naturally entrepreneurial spirit, Burke and Hempel applied this knowledge towards building a startup PR firm into a fully integrated communications agency. From negotiating stock options with VC firms to handling an assortment of clients, Burke fully committed herself to Spark. Playing a role in the branding of powerhouse players like Walmart, Verizon Ventures, and Bloomberg Beta contributed to Spark’s vision of realizing the potential of many startup businesses and transforming them into household names. Extending beyond Spark’s immediate influence, Burke has also opened doors for many new companies by introducing them to the leading venture capital firms in their respective industries for potential funding. Moreover, the agency founder has come full circle by aiding several women in starting their own companies through guidance on building up the right structure to sustain a new business venture. Burke strives to remain well-connected and inspiring to young professionals both within her own organization and externally. “What started as my admiration of Donna’s ability to lead her team to tangible results turned into a partnership where we divided the focus on agency growth and business operations and an emphasis on the industry, media, and clients,” said Soucy, “In an industry full of many outstanding professionals, there is no doubt in my mind that Donna stands out among the top.” With Soucy leading the San Francisco headquarters, Burke transitioned to Spark’s New York office, managing the nineteen employees and constantly promoting the company’s East Coast development. The company continues to experience rapid growth with its extension of digital marketing services to integrate with its public relations core. “For the past eighteen years, Spark has found success through our deep roots of promoting the tech industry,” added Burke, “Our achievements as an agency along with my personal desire to act as a positive role model for my five-year-old daughter fuel my passion for leading Spark towards fulfilling its ambitions.” Spark is one of the largest independent public relations agencies in the world. The agency is headquartered in San Francisco with a second office in New York. Since its inception, Spark has represented clients ranging from stealth startups to Fortune 500 public companies. The agency has also won numerous awards including one of the fastest growing privately held companies for three years in a row by Inc. Magazine. For more information, visit www.sparkpr.com.