Industry and Influence

Our Team

Contributors

The writers and editors covering the ideas, companies, and creative forces shaping modern business.

Tamara Edwards

Tamara Edwards

Leadership & Communications Contributor

Tamara Edwards is a strategic communications advisor, public relations executive, and Founder & CEO of Tamara Edwards & Co., where she advises founders, executives, investors, civic leaders, and growth-stage companies on communications strategy, executive positioning, and reputation management. Her work bridges public relations, business strategy, and public affairs, helping organizations build influential brands and lasting credibility. Before founding her firm, Tamara served in communications and operations leadership roles on Capitol Hill. She has since advised organizations across technology, national security, venture capital, healthcare, housing, and economic development. As a contributor to Industry & Influence, Tamara covers leadership, communications, executive positioning, and the business of reputation.

5 articles published

LinkedIn
Liz Plummer

Liz Plummer

Arts & Business Contributor

Liz Plummer is an executive producer, creative director, artist, and media executive whose career has been built at the intersection of business, storytelling, and the arts. As Executive Producer of Trending Today, she has spent nearly two decades developing nationally televised programming that highlights innovative companies, entrepreneurs, designers, and creative thinkers, translating complex ideas into compelling stories for broadcast and digital audiences. Beyond television, Liz has maintained a lifelong commitment to the arts. As a practicing artist, former public arts committee member, and passionate supporter of living artists, she believes creativity is one of the most powerful drivers of innovation, culture, and economic growth. As an Arts & Creative Contributor for Industry & Influence, Liz writes about contemporary artists, design, architecture, public art, creative entrepreneurship, and the cultural forces shaping modern business.

11 articles published

LinkedIn
Paco Blanco

Paco Blanco

Digital Marketing & Tech Contributor

Paco Blanco is a digital marketing strategist and technologist with deep expertise across performance marketing, SEO, web design, social media, and AI-driven growth. He has spent his career at the intersection of marketing and technology, building scalable acquisition strategies and helping brands leverage emerging tools, AI platforms, and modern tech stacks to compete and win. With a practitioner's understanding of how algorithms, automation, and artificial intelligence are reshaping the marketing landscape, Paco brings both strategic vision and hands-on technical fluency to his reporting. As a contributor to Industry & Influence, he covers digital marketing strategy, AI and technology, and the tools and platforms shaping how modern brands grow.

5 articles published

LinkedIn
Christie Bellino

Christie Bellino

Food, Beverage & Concept Development Contributor

Christie Bellino is a brand strategist, concept developer, and hospitality industry veteran with deep expertise across food and beverage, restaurant development, and consumer packaged goods. Her career spans the full arc of brand building, from concept creation and executive development to marketing, enterprise optimization, and guest retention. Christie has served as a human resources business partner and brand development leader, bringing a rare combination of operational rigor and creative instinct to the businesses she works with. She has a particular talent for identifying the cultural moment behind a brand, understanding not just what a company sells but why it resonates. Her background in recruiting, training, and customer service coaching gives her an insider perspective on the people and systems that make hospitality brands thrive or fail. As a contributor to Industry & Influence, Christie covers food and beverage innovation, restaurant concepts, CPG brands, and the entrepreneurs redefining how people eat, drink, and experience culture.

5 articles published

LinkedIn
Vivian James

Vivian James

Culture & Business Contributor

Vivian James is a writer and industry observer whose work spans fashion, furniture, consumer culture, and the emerging brands reshaping how people live and buy. With an extensive background in fashion and furniture production, she brings a practitioner's eye to the stories behind the products and companies that define modern taste. Vivian has worked across design, manufacturing, and retail, giving her a firsthand understanding of what it takes to build a brand from concept to consumer. Outside of work, Vivian is an avid adventurer, hiking remote trails, exploring off-the-beaten-path destinations, and seeking out the cultures and landscapes that rarely make the headlines. That spirit of exploration increasingly shapes her writing, and she is expanding her coverage to include adventure, travel, and the outdoor industry. As a Contributing Writer for Industry & Influence, she covers emerging brands, food culture, design, adventure, and the creative economy.

4 articles published

LinkedIn