About Me
As a strategist, consultant, and writer, Susan Spencer brings authority, innovative thinking and editorial expertise to nonprofits, foundations, public health advocacy organizations, and major corporations. She is president of Susan Spencer Consulting, where she provides strategic advisory services with a focus on content and thought leadership.
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Susan is a senior advisor at Avoq, a strategic communications and public affairs agency in New York and Washington, DC. As a senior vice president in Avoq's Reputation Management group (2022-2026), she worked across a diverse client portfolio on content strategy, earned media, business development, and thought leadership for clients that included American Water, the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation, Sallie Mae, Flora Food Group, Women’s Heart Alliance, Truth Initiative, ReMa, Delta Airlines, Mealogic, JP Morgan Chase, University of Illinois/Gies College of Business, Well Being Trust, and the American Cancer Society/Cancer Action Network.
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A longtime media executive, Susan was the editor in chief of Woman’s Day and womansday.com (2012-2020), owned by Hearst. During her eight-year tenure, she revitalized the magazine by connecting deeply with its audience of 15+ million and bringing it back to its roots as an inspirational source of information for American women. The magazine was the top-selling monthly on U.S. newsstands from 2016-2020.
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In 2023, Susan was appointed to the National Heart, Lung and Blood Institute’s Advisory Council at the National Institutes of Health (NIH).
As a volunteer, she sits on the board of WomenHeart, a Washington, DC, patient-centric nonprofit that supports women living with or at risk of heart disease. She advises the board marketing and development committee of Safe Horizon, the nation’s largest nonprofit victims' services organization, and recently joined the board of Temple of the Forgotten, a Portland, OR-based nonprofit that provides interfaith spiritual care to unhoused and marginalized people. Closer to home, she is a decade-long volunteer at a community food pantry.
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Susan lives in New Jersey with her husband and is the proud mom of two amazing young women.
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Further information: LinkedIn profile: Susan Spencer
Mentorship
Throughout my working life, I've been deeply fortunate to be on the receiving end of kindness, support, and wisdom when I've needed it most. This generosity allowed me to build and sustain a successful 32-year career in media. I've tried to do the same by mentoring numerous young women through companies such as Avoq, Hearst, and Time Inc., as well as the Connecticut College Alumni Association, Women’s Media Group, and New York Women in Communications.
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I believe that empowering young women to achieve their career goals will increase creativity and innovation across the globe. So I’ve recommitted to my work of mentoring and advising women who are in the early stages of building their careers. It is my honor to guide our future female leaders, and support them as they change the world.
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Need a fresh set of eyes on a resume or LinkedIn profile? Advice on how to ace an interview? Want help navigating the corporate world? Reach out to me for a free mentoring session and let's talk.
Current Board Work
Board Member, WomenHeart
I sit on the board of WomenHeart, a national patient-centric organization that serves women living with or at risk of heart disease.
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Marketing Committee, Safe Horizon
I work with board members and staff to ideate and implement communications and marketing strategies for the nation's largest nonprofit victims' services organization.
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Board Member, Temple of the Forgotten
I provide advice and guidance to a nonprofit focused on providing interfaith spiritual care for the unhoused and marginalized.