As a seasoned public relations professional, Kathryn Kjarsgaard knows how to get her ducks in a row. After all, she did just that (literally!) earlier in her career as a PR account executive in the food and hospitality industry. While working on a campaign for the Peabody Hotel in Memphis, Kathryn and her team flew the hotel’s famous ducks to another hotel client in Louisville, Kentucky for a weekend. The ducks stayed in a special suite and performed their legendary “march” in the lobby. The campaign was a huge success, generating substantial media interest and resulting in numerous local and regional print and TV news stories.

Kathryn continues to get her ducks in a row every day on behalf of her clients at Taylor Johnson. As a senior account manager, it’s her responsibility to create and manage the public relations programs for her assigned accounts. Her work has resulted in placements in publications such as Crain’s Chicago Business, Chicago Tribune, Builder magazine, MarketWatch and Forbes.com, as well as on NBC-TV and HGTVFrontDoor.com. Perhaps more importantly, through Kathryn’s efforts, her homebuilder clients have seen increased traffic to their sales centers.

After growing up in Tennessee and Kentucky, Kathryn graduated from the University of Kentucky with a degree in Journalism and then earned a master’s degree in Integrated Marketing Communications from Northwestern University.

In her spare time, Kathryn spends time with her husband, Joal, and their two teenage children, whether it’s traveling or cheering on the kids at their baseball, softball or basketball games. She enjoys walking with her rescue dog, Lexi, as well as gardening, baking, and taking classes at Spenga, a combination of spin, strength and yoga.

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