Show Me the AI Money: Comms Execs Spill Their ROI Playbooks

Paul J. Gennaro is senior vice president and chief communications officer for New York Life, where he leads the Corporate Communications team for the largest mutual life insurance company in the United States and one of the largest life insurers in the world.  New York Life, a Fortune 100 company with $54 billion in annual revenue, provides insurance and investment solutions to individuals and businesses – and operates one of the world’s largest global asset managers through New York Life Investments, with $771 billion in assets under management. Prior to joining New York Life in Sept. 2023, Paul spent nine years as senior vice president, and chief brand and communications officer, for Voya Financial, a leading health, wealth and investment company with $790 billion in total assets under management and administration.  Previously, he was senior vice president and chief communications officer for AECOM, a $20-billion global infrastructure firm with nearly 100,000 employees serving clients in more than 150 countries, since 2006.  Paul’s corporate career also includes leadership roles for Johns Manville, a subsidiary of Berkshire Hathaway, where he led all global corporate and marketing communications; Ingersoll-Rand; Dell; and American Express.  He began his career as a journalist and public affairs officer for the U.S. Navy. Twenty-two of Paul’s 31-year corporate career has been in the top communications role. He has overseen multiple global rebrands as well as communications in support of more than 50 M&A-related transactions, an award-winning initial public offering on the New York Stock Exchange, multiple seamless CEO transitions and new business launches, and numerous business integrations. Paul has been honored with PRWeek magazine’s PR Professional of the Year award; the John W. Hill Award, the Public Relations Society of America (PRSA) New York chapter’s most prestigious honor; and the International Business Award for Communications Executive of the Year. He is a member of four prominent organizations for the most-senior global brand, corporate communications and public relations executives: the Institute for Public Relations (trustee), the Arthur W. Page Society, The Seminar, and The Wisemen.  Paul was also a member of the Wall Street Journal Chief Marketing Officer (CMO) Network.   Externally, Paul serves as treasurer on the board of directors for Disability:IN, a national nonprofit that advances disability inclusion in the workplace, supply chain and marketplace.

Greg Matusky is the Founder and CEO of Gregory FCA, one of the 40 largest PR firms in America. The firm conducted a proprietary "AI ROI" study and report with details to be shared at AI Horizons. Greg hosts a weekly AI-focused podcast, “The Disruption is Now,” and is an impassioned speaker on human communications and how it powers our culture, economy and future. He has helped develop the communication skills of countless professionals, providing them with insights from more than 40 years of experience in storytelling. Matusky’s fascination with AI is driven by a deep desire to allow others to quickly tell compelling stories, a skill that took him years to master.

Alan Black is the director of corporate communications for the Naval Surface Warfare Center Dahlgren Division, U.S. Navy, at Dahlgren, Virginia. A highly skilled and talented leader in the strategic communication and public relations areas, he has more than 30 years demonstrated success in improving communication between the Department of Defense and key audiences. Proven experience advising senior leaders and management at all levels on legislative, community, media, and internal communication issues as well as communication planning in major operations and contingencies around the world.

John Yembrick is the director of Editorial Strategy and Content Integration at Lockheed Martin. In this role, he oversees internal and external communications tools, including GenAI,as well as the editorial and content distribution strategies associated with them. He manages the planning, preparation, writing and development of digital communications for the company's intranet, website, social media channels and other platforms, including articles, photographs, videos, graphics and posts. He also oversees Lockheed Martin’s external websites, mobile applications and social media properties, with responsibility for content strategy, resource planning, and performance standards for all owned communications channels. He previously worked as the director of Digital Engagement for the U.S. Department of Health & Human Services, which fosters advances in medicine, public health, and social services, and served as NASA’s first digital communications director, sharing some of the most compelling content in the world. John has over 20 years of experience in communications, and has managed media relations, video, still imagery, social media and websites. John is driven by the belief that digital storytelling and inspiring content can connect with everyone on the planet if presented the right way. He take pride in advocating away from traditional communications methods towards digital storytelling, reaching more people directly than ever before.