We recently connected with Clorissa Wright-Thomas and have shared our conversation below.

Clorissa, looking forward to hearing all of your stories today. Talk to us about building your team? What was it like? What were some of the key challenges and what was your process like?

My business has been up and running since 2006. Initially, I was a solopreneur and did all of the functions my company required by myself. I operated this way for about 5 years.

At the 5 year mark, I tapped into colleges and hired interns twice per year to assist. To date, I’m proud to say that Georgia State University, Morehouse College and Kennesaw State University sent be THE BEST students to work with me. I operated this way for about 2 years and it was great.

From years 7 through 14 I began to hire a combination of interns and independent contractors. This was necessary because the volume of clientele had increased to the point that it was impossible to manage without some level of consistency. This worked for a short period of time–until the caliber and volume of clients increased again.

The global health pandemic hit and surprisingly, volume increased again (due to increased damage control needs and more people started businesses). At this point I realized that I needed a steady, permanent staff. I began to craft a plan to curate centrally-located office space and map out employee needs.

In 2021 I onboarded a full, in-office staff to cover project management, PR assistant duties, light social media and additional publicists.

Rolling into 2023, the client trajectory continues on an upward climb.

As always, we appreciate you sharing your insights and we’ve got a few more questions for you, but before we get to all of that can you take a minute to introduce yourself and give our readers some of your back background and context?

I am a public relations executive, media training specialist and media liaison with 16 years of experience in entertainment, television, music, food & beverage, beauty, fashion and small business development.

My firm, Synergy PR Services has been ranked in Atlanta’s Top 20 PR firms, and individually I’ve ranked in top-professionals in the country via The Walker’s Legacy organization and Business Mogul Magazine. In 2022, I was appointed to a board seat with the Georgia Entertainment Caucus.

I pride myself on managing clients with integrity, personal touch and respect. I value the relationships with my clients and my partners in media.

What’s worked well for you in terms of a source for new clients?

Referrals have always been the leading source of new clients finding us! I am honored when clients go the extra mile to endorse us to their colleagues and fellow professionals.

How do you keep your team’s morale high?

I believe that regardless of one’s title, everyone deserves an opportunity to be heard. As the founder, sure, I started the brand–but the day-to-day operations are a team effort.

It is important for the people that you hired feel valued for the duration of their tenure with you. Realistically, staff won’t always get what they want, but being heard and considered goes a long way!

I do my best to manage my team the way I’d wished previous employers managed me.

Contact Info:

• Website: https://synergyprservices.com
• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/yupimwright/?next=%2F
• Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/publicistclorissawright/

Image Credits
Courtesy of Synergy PR Services