Shelley Gertzog Cowan
Communications
I graduated from Kirkland in 1975 with a BA in Anthropology. During my junior year, I spent six months living in a village in Colombia, conducting ethnographic fieldwork and studying the connection between beliefs about nutrition and household economies. At the time, Medical Anthropology was just emerging as a field of study. Thinking it might be an interesting career choice, I applied to graduate school and was awarded a full fellowship at the University of Kentucky. I completed my MA, but with the intent of pursing medicine or nutrition. By then I was living in Michigan, waiting to become a state resident. Having been a photographer and Super-8 moviemaker for many years, I got a job at a camera store where I met people who worked in Detroit's commercial film business.
After a few years in film production I moved to advertising – the first of many career evolutions. I spent my free time working on documentaries with Detroit filmmakers. When we moved to Cincinnati – a city with very little film production – I became an advertising agency copywriter. When the agency closed its Cincinnati office, I went out on my own again and gradually moved toward business communications. I design communication strategies and programs, write speeches, and produce corporate documentaries. Most of my work has a common focus: I help executives explain strategic change to their employees, partners and shareholders. I use a variety of storytelling techniques to show why changes in markets, cultures and economies demand changes in strategy. I use my training as an anthropologist every day.
Email: scowan@cinci.rr.com
