Alyssa Connell loves the sky and those who’ve dedicated their lives to it, starting with her own family. As the CEO of Connell Communications, a preeminent marketing and public relations firm – Alyssa founded Connell Aviation Group to combine her love of the open air, her aviation family and her passion for strategic communications. She believes her greatest responsibility is to bring the knowledge and experience of the most dedicated aviators to the aviation and aerospace industry through affordable, quality communications platforms.

Alyssa is a nationally-recognized industry leader in PR, marketing and social media. As a PR and marketing leader, she brings a multi-faceted skill set – offering a unique mix of PR, marketing and social media strategy, leadership and copywriting. Her expertise includes strategic communications, social media/SEO, reputation management, trade events, crisis communication, media/community relations, fundraising, TV production and event planning.

Prior to starting her own communications firm, Alyssa served as Vice President/Public Relations for the multi-national Hellman agency. She led the team of PR and social media specialists in creating and implementing strategies and programs for clients multi-nationally, including many Fortune companies.

Her programs and campaigns have received local, regional and multi-national awards. She has extensive training in social media, including high-level MASTERS certifications from the Public Relations Society of America.

In 2014, Alyssa received the prestigious “Woman of the Year” Distinction from the National Association of Professional Women. She has been awarded the Cedar Valley of Iowa’s most prestigious honor, receiving distinction as one of the “Top 20 under 40” business leaders by Courier Communications. She is a sought-after guest speaker for collegiate classrooms and speaking events, as well as annual PRSSA and PRSA conferences in the state of Iowa.