GolinHarris is a holistic communications firm. It was established in 1956. GolinHarris is owned by Interpublic Group of Companies (IPG) and has 34 wholly owned offices located in the Americas, Asia Pacific, Europe and the Middle East.
GolinHarris has created public relations programs for clients such as Dow Chemical Company, Florida Department of Citrus, Kaiser Permanente, McDonald’s, Nintendo of America Inc. and Texas Instruments.
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In 2011, GolinHarris was named Best Large Agency to Work For by the Holmes Report. The agency was also awarded the 101 Best and Brightest Companies to Work For in Chicago, the Sunday Times' Best Companies to Work For in the UK and one of the Best Places to Work by the Los Angeles Business Journal. Creative director, James Kelly, was recognized as one of PR Week's 40 Under 40.
In 2010, the agency was named 2010 Large PR Agency of the Year by PRWeek, the second time the agency received the award in a three-year period. At the 2010 IPRS PRISM Awards, Christina Cheang of the GolinHarris Singapore office was awarded Outstanding PR Mentor of the Year and Zandra Zuno, the multicultural marketing practice lead, won PRWeek’s 40 under 40 Early Influencers award. Additional awards included: The Sunday Times Best Companies to Work For, Chicago Tribune’s Top Work Places, Crain’s Best Places to Work in New York City, National Association for Business Resources’ 101 Best and Brightest Companies to Work for in Chicago and Los Angeles Business Journal’s Best Places to Work For in Los Angeles.
Global practices include Automotive, Corporate Communications, Corporate Social Responsibility (branded as Change), Healthcare, Internal Communications (branded as Insidedge), Marketing & Brand Strategy, Public Affairs, and Technology. Specialty services include Broadcast Services, Creative Industries, Financial Communications, Interactive, Media Training, Multicultural Communications, and Research. Proprietary tools include "Trust/Leadership/Preference" (methodology for measuring components of a successful brand), "GH Branding" (methodology for building, protecting and sustaining products and corporate brands), "Corporate Citizenship Audit" (research-based analytical service designed to maximize the return companies receive on their philanthropic investment), and the GolinHarris "Trusted Media Index" (ongoing research initiative and touch point management tool to measure trust in a variety of information channels over time).
1951 - Al Golin begins his public relations career as a field press representative with MGM Studios
1956 - Al Golin joins Max Cooper & Associates
1957 - Al Golin begins working for McDonald's for a retainer of $500 a month. Today, McDonald's is still one of the firm's key clients
1958 - Al Golin is named a partner and Ben Burns joins the firm. Max Cooper & Associates is renamed Cooper, Burns & Golin.
1965 - Cooper, Burns & Golin is renamed Cooper & Golin. Burns leaves the firm
1967 - Cooper & Golin opens its first offices in San Francisco
1969 - Cooper & Golin opens its first office in London
1975 - Max Cooper leaves the firm, which is renamed Golin Communications
1977 - Golin Communications creates the first corporate sponsorship of a national telethon by signing on with Jerry Lewis and his annual muscular dystrophy telethon
1981 - The firm is re-named Golin/Harris Communications
1985 - Golin/Harris Communications is acquired by Foote, Cone & Belding (FCB)
1986 - Golin/Harris' first office in New York opens. Golin/Harris takes over management of public relations offices in Philadelphia and London owned by FCB
1989 - Golin/Harris is acquired by Shandwick International
1990 - Tom Harris retires from the firm
1996 - Golin/Harris is named "Agency of the Year" by Inside PR
1997 - Golin/Harris relocates its Chicago corporate headquarters, from 500 North Michigan Avenue to 111 East Wacker Drive
1999 - Golin/Harris Communications is acquired by the Interpublic Group of Companies and renamed Golin/Harris International
2000 - Golin/Harris opens offices in Tokyo and Hong Kong
2002 - Golin/Harris merges with The Nixon Group
2003 - Golin/Harris merges with the Benjamin Group and opens an office in Orange County, California. Golin/Harris merges with The Weber Group in London
2004 - Golin/Harris opens offices in Beijing, Shanghai and Guangzhou. The firm is rebranded from Golin/Harris to GolinHarris.
2005 - GolinHarris establishes offices in Baltimore, Dubai and Toronto.
2006- GolinHarris celebrates its 50th year in business.
2006 - Merges with Panache Communications to specialize in Asian PR.