Susan Stautberg, President of PartnerCom Corporation, is a Senior Executive and innovative, multi-dimensional leader and bridge-builder on a global scale creating visionary strategic alliances in the public, private, and social sectors. She has proven expertise in strategic planning, business expansion, market development, and corporate governance with extensive, top level, quality relationships around the world. Susan’s unique career spans the corporate, entrepreneurial, media, and non-profit sectors, as well as politics and government, including the White House.
Her firm, PartnerCom, assembles and manages Advisory Boards globally for businesses, governments, and non-profits. It is one of the first companies providing Advisory Boards with a targeted focus to corporations and organizations seeking specific expertise and unencumbered by the fiduciary responsibilities of a Board of Directors. The Advisory Boards she assembles are composed of outside experts able to help innovative companies manage change, reposition or reinvent themselves, make informed decisions and seek new strategic positions and alliances. PartnerCom is also retained to perform CEO and C-Suite confidential executive searches for corporations. In addition, she co-founded On Board Bootcamp, which provides an insider’s guide on how to be selected to be a corporate, private company or advisory board director through programs delivered around the globe.
In her capacity as a Corporate and non-profit Director, Susan has served on or created the Advisory Boards for numerous organization including Amex Open, AMEC, Avis Rent-A-Car, Avon, Bank of America, Bayer Diabetes Care Division, CIGNA, Citigroup, Council on Competitiveness, Deutsche Private Bank, Flexjet, Goldman Sachs, Houlihan Lokey, Investment New Zealand, Merrill Lynch, Medtronic, Microsoft, Northern Trust, Northwestern Mutual, Procter and Gamble, STRATCO Global, Sun Trust/AMA, Swissotel, TIGER 21, The United Nations Office for Project Services, and Walmart.
Susan co-founded WomenCorporateDirectors (WCD), with over 1,400 members serving on over 1,550 Corporate Boards. Expansion during the past 4 years has been strategic and focused in areas where strong corporate governance is mandated and of paramount importance. WCD now includes 17 chapters in cities throughout North America, 4 chapters throughout Central and South America, 5 chapters throughout Europe, 5 chapters in Africa/Middle East, 2 chapters in Australia, and 10 chapters throughout India and Asia. Chapters in Argentina, Cairo, Cleveland, Columbus, Denver, Iceland, Istanbul, Japan, Kenya, Milan, Netherlands, New Zealand and San Diego are in formation.
The Belizean Grove, also founded by Susan, is a preeminent community and retreat for leading women who share knowledge and connections. Conceived of and assembled as a constellation of global women leaders, the Belizean Grove, as well as a group of tomorrows rising women leaders in TARA, understand the importance of global issues and the network’s core value to share and support each others efforts. Susan develops the annual strategic focus for the conference retreat and other events throughout the year; bringing together global subject matter experts and members to address issues of critical significance.
Susan decided to become an entrepreneur with the founding of MasterMedia Ltd., the only company to combine publishing with a speaker’s bureau. The quality publishing house produced more than 125 books, including best sellers and Book-of-the Month, Doubleday, Literary Guide, and Reader’s Digest selections. The Speakers Bureau worked with some of the foremost businesses and universities in the world.
Earlier, Susan served as Director of Communications for Touche Ross (now Deloitte & Touche), McNeil Consumer Products, and the U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission. As a Westinghouse/GroupW TV correspondent covering the White House and Capitol Hill, Ms. Stautberg was the first woman and one of the youngest to head a Washington TV bureau. She then became the first TV journalist to be chosen as a White House Fellow where she worked for both Vice President Rockefeller and Secretary of State Henry Kissinger.
In recognition of her business acumen and commitment to global women leaders, Susan has served on Presidential Commissions, Boards, and Foundations: The Commission on Presidential Scholars, U.S. Japan Fellowship, The Institute for Educational Affairs, The Defense Advisory Council on Women in the Armed Services and the White House Fellows Association.
She also dedicates her time to non-profit organizations; currently, Susan is a Board Member of the Adventures for the Mind Foundation and the SSS Leadership Foundation. Susan’s active involvement in The Preservation Society of Newport County is longstanding; currently she chairs The Elms Committee and is a member of the Capital Campaign Council. Previously, she served three terms as Secretary of the Board of Trustees of The Preservation Society and also chaired both The Elms Centennial and Preservation Society’s 60th Anniversary Committees.
Susan has received numerous awards and honors including The Director’s Choice Award. In 2006 she was selected as a Purpose Prize Fellow and named one of Women’s E News’ 21 Leaders for the 21st Century. She was honored with Alumnae Awards from The Shipley School and Wheaton College.
An effective and sought after public speaker, Susan addresses groups around the world, including leading business schools and national business and CEO conferences. Her writing consists of five books and articles in major newspapers and magazines, such as The New York Times and The Wall Street Journal among others. Her on-air interview experience includes many national programs including The Today Show, CBS Evening News, Oprah, and Sally Jesse Raphael.
She completed the Executive Education Program at Harvard Business School, holds an M.A. in Public and International Affairs from George Washington University, and received a B.A. from Wheaton College. As an Adjunct Professor at the Elliot School of International Affairs at George Washington University, Susan taught “Global Visions, Strategies, and Tactics for International Organizations” for three years. Susan and her husband have a grown son and live in Manhattan.