Where strategy met execution.

Working in a client-facing role as a subcontractor to JLL Design Services, Michele helped translate C-suite priorities surrounding Rheem’s 100th anniversary into experiences designed to strengthen customer loyalty and employee engagement.

Michele developed the internal engagement concept “Next Starts Now And With Me,” extending Rheem’s 100th anniversary platform into a call to action that connected its global workforce of 10,000+ employees to the company’s next chapter.

The cornerstone event of the year was Rheem’s largest-ever Pro Partner International Conference, attended by 7,500 top customers and partners and recognized by BizBash among its Most Innovative Meetings of 2025.

At the USTA, Michele worked across the organization’s most important commercial properties and strategic initiatives, including the US Open, then the largest annually attended sporting event in the world.

She developed customized corporate partnership proposals for major global brands; supported new partnerships, renewals and activation for brands including Emirates, American Express, Moët & Chandon, Western & Southern and Heineken. Her work also included broadcast and digital media integration as well as philanthropic extensions.

Michele was also selected by USTA executive and board leadership to lead development of the proposal for a $100 million strategic initiative which ultimately resulted in the creation of the USTA National Campus in Lake Nona, Florida, the largest public tennis training facility in the country, dubbed “The Home of American Tennis.”

Michele’s relationship with Make-A-Wish evolved from teenage volunteer and grassroots fundraiser to professional marketing and development roles and ultimately executive leadership over the span of more than two decades.

As a high school student, Michele created Swishes for Wishes, connecting her role managing the boys’ basketball team with her volunteer work for Make-A-Wish to raise funds and awareness for the organization. She later brought the campaign to the University of Pennsylvania, where it grew to engage corporate partners, professional sports organizations and the broader Philadelphia community. Her early work on behalf of Make-A-Wish included being named New York Newsday Volunteer of the Year.

Her subsequent work on the organization’s behalf helped earn significant recognition, including the inaugural Infinite Wish Award from Make-A-Wish Foundation of America, which Michele was the driving force behind the chapter receiving, and a Golden Flame Award from the International Association of Business Communicators. She also collaborated on a Regional Emmy Award-winning television feature which highlighted the organization’s impact.

As COO of Make-A-Wish of Georgia and Alabama, Michele’s role extended well beyond marketing. She helped lead the organization through a period of significant expansion, securing hundreds of thousands of dollars in grants and in-kind services to modernize its operational infrastructure, supporting the integration of six offices, and putting systems and tools in place to support the chapter’s growth.

Michele managed CNBC’s strategic partnership with LinkedIn during its development, leading one of the largest cross-functional project teams of her career.

Working across product, digital, marketing, legal and finance, she helped translate the high-level strategic relationship into the coordinated workstreams required for implementation across the organization.

The partnership itself was forward-looking for 2008, bringing together CNBC’s business media content and LinkedIn’s rapidly growing professional network across digital distribution, product integration, audience engagement and programming.

In the aftermath of Hurricane Katrina, Michele conceived Brunch for the Bayou and helped take it from idea to execution in approximately 3½ weeks, mobilizing Atlanta’s corporate, sports, media and entertainment communities around a common purpose.

She assembled a team of like-minded volunteers and brought together sponsors, broadcasters, athletes, entertainers, venues and other supporters to create a fundraising event benefiting Habitat for Humanity’s hurricane recovery efforts.

The initiative generated approximately $75,000 in cash and in-kind support, demonstrating the ability to move quickly from an idea to coordinated action by rallying people and resources around a clear vision.

During Michele’s tenure, HowStuffWorks was undergoing significant growth and transformation, expanding organically as its audience and digital footprint grew, while also accelerating growth through acquisition and an expanding portfolio of established consumer brands and content properties.

Michele led internal and agency teams across integrated marketing, high-profile brand experiences, strategic partnerships and public relations, while contributing to corporate development initiatives including prospective buyer presentations and communications surrounding significant financing and transaction activity. She provided marketing leadership for the integration of long-standing brands including Consumer Guide Auto and Mobil Travel Guide (now Forbes Travel Guide).

The company’s growth trajectory continued into 2007, when HowStuffWorks reached 3.9 million U.S. monthly unique visitors, up 74% year over year, and 18 million monthly page views, up 40%. HowStuffWorks also attracted substantial outside investment during this period, including growth capital from Carl Icahn.

HowStuffWorks was subsequently acquired by Discovery Communications for $250 million.

As COVID disrupted the building industry, Michele joined Building Industry Partners’ principals during the final stages of planning for an invitation-only virtual summit designed to help industry leaders navigate an unprecedented and rapidly changing environment.

Michele built and led the creative and production team, supported execution, and led pre- and post-event promotion. In a matter of weeks, the team delivered a three-day program bringing together 54 industry leaders and 150 invited operators and business owners.

BUILDER described the Summit as a “must-engage ‘master class’” and a “mindfully-produced experience.”