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Lessons from Two of the Nation's Largest Disasters, from Someone Who Was Involved in Both
 

Thursday, April 10, 2008

4:00 to 5:00 p.m.

Richard and Joan Stark Auditorium

1148 Gerdin Business Building
(note updated location)

Reception to follow in the Bergstrom Commons. This event is free and open to the public.

Scott Hamilton, a 1982 management graduate of the College of Business at Iowa State University, was vice president of investor relations at WorldCom when it spiraled into bankruptcy amid the country's largest accounting scandal and was a public information officer for the State of Mississippi during Hurricane Katrina. He has been at the center of the most extreme crises imaginable.

Hamilton is currently a partner in a public affairs consultancy in Jackson, Mississippi. His background includes communications and marketing leadership positions in corporate, government and agency environments. Most recently he was Vice President and Group Account Director for The Ramey Agency, a Jackson-based advertising firm catering to high-end and high-performance organizations.

In his role as Director of Communications for Mississippi Development Authority; the State of Mississippi’s lead economic developer, he directed the Authority’s marketing and public relations efforts; especially programs that helped establish public’s generally positive perception of Mississippi’s response to Hurricane Katrina and speed the state’s economic recovery.

Hamilton became Vice President of Investor Relations for WorldCom in February of 2000 just as the Internet bubble was bursting and spent the next three years communicating what he later found out was tenuous financial information to Wall Street and main street investors.

Hamilton joined WorldCom when it acquired SkyTel, the pioneer in wireless text messaging, where he served as Vice President of Corporate Communications. Hamilton began his communications career with MCI Communications in Washington, DC, where he held staff positions in corporate communications and investor relations.

In addition to his degree from Iowa State, Hamilton holds an MBA in International Business from George Washington University.

Hamilton is a member of the Millsaps College, Else School of Business Advisory Board and CITms (Communications Information Technology Mississippi) Board. He is a past board member of the Mississippi Symphony Orchestra, and is a member the Public Relations Association of Mississippi.

This lecture is made possible through the support of the Caterpillar Foundation, the Bacon Center for Ethics, Ralph and Jean Eucher, and the Committee on Lectures (funded by the Government of the Student Body).