Ilona Leib

Since founding PR Partner, Ilona has been PR advisor for large enterprises, governmental and public organizations and has lead the communication of several large-scale projects. She has experience in forming public opinion and lobbying. She has constructed PR strategies and conducted marketing campaigns in the media, advised and represented litigants in PR crises and political crises. Ilona is a lecturer of crisis communication management at the University of Tartu and she has carried out communication workshops for hundreds of government officials and employees of privately owned companies.

EXPERIENCE

Ilona has advised companies in positioning and repositioning as well as provided counseling for private and public organizations in change management. Ilona has previously advised companies in launching trademarks and innovative products, she has created and carried out marketing and social marketing campaigns. Through the years, Ilona has advised several political parties in planning and conducting election campaigns.

Ilona has conducted focus groups researches, been an advisor to local municipality leaders and governmental institutions in strategic and practical matters and arranged communication in the field of medicine, both strategically and practically.

Ilona has experience in making PR arrangements for large-scale art projects and she has previously drawn up and conducted sports communication for sports federations, athletes and sports clubs.

Ilona has carried out seminars on public opinion shaping, press relations and organizational communications. She has organized motivation trainings, simulations and exercises on crisis communication management.

Ilona was one of the creators of the Estonian national crisis communication system and an author of the crisis communication handbook published by the Estonian Ministry of Internal Affairs in 2003. Ilona has trained a couple hundred specialists of crisis management and of public security. From 2002 to 2004, Ilona was the head of the national crisis management team’s media group during various cases (air crashes in 2001 and 2003) and she has been a key advisor in solving several political and business crises.

Ilona is a lecturer of crisis communication management at the University of Tartu and has also given lectures of PR management in Tallinn University. From 1999 to 2004, Ilona worked as the Head of the Public Affairs Section at the Estonian Ministry of Internal Affairs and was an advisor to five Ministers of Internal Affairs during here career there. In 1999, Ilona was the leader of the Estonian Reform Party’s elections campaign in Tartu region during the Estonian parliamentary elections. From 1994 to 1999, Ilona worked as the Information Manager at Estiko, a holding company listed at the Tallinn Stock Exchange, and she was also a member of the company’s governing board.

EDUCation

Ilona graduated from the University of Tartu in 2003 with a degree in journalism and continued her Master’s studies in Public Relations and Information Management. She has researched communication in corruption cases. Her Master’s thesis is focused on the effects publicized information has on processes of criminal investigation.

other interests

Ilona is a member of the Art Museum of Estonia Friends of Art Society and the Estonian Society of Academic Journalism. She has previously been active in the Estonian heritage protection movement and citizen committees; she used to be a leader of the Estonian Paneuropean Union and she was one of the founders of the Estonian Reform Party Youth Council.

In her free time, Ilona plays tennis, enjoys theater and concerts, loves reading and is taking up painting.