Testimonials

I recently met with Joel Fortner to learn more about how to market my small legal practice. Joel gave me some really powerful and practical advice and helped me to understand how to put it into effect myself. It is evident that Joel has the heart of a teacher and a passion for helping people to grow and achieve.

Gordon Boutwell, Lodestone Legal Group

Joel took on the marketing and promotion of our event with incredible enthusiasm and personal care. He approached the promotion from angles and directions that we had never considered. He has managed to keep our annual one-day event in the consciousness of our participants/customers year round. Joel helped us create our brand, generate excitement around that brand, and thus helped to grow the brand. His help with marketing has been invaluable.

Melissa Miller, Race Director, Oak Barrel Half Marathon

There was no room for deception, mixed messages and hidden agendas with Joel. Finally, he was a sage confidant. He heard me out and offered frank feedback on what I was trying to do, and how it was going to come across. Bottom line: he made our leadership team more effective, and found ways for us to get things done.

As my Public Affairs director, Joel took on the role as the “White House Communications Office.” He took it upon himself to get out in front of events and make sure every aspect of my operation linked to a “message.” Joel had an uncanny knack of getting into my mind to figure out where I was trying to go with initiatives. He routinely knew what I needed before I did. A message maestro, he found the right time, place, words, and medium to get the message across. His keen foresight of unintended consequences and potential misperceptions was vital to avoiding traps. His reliability was rock solid. I could simply “fire and forget,” never needing to check up on him. But most importantly, Joel was a true model of the Air Force core value of “Integrity First.” There was no room for deception, mixed messages and hidden agendas with Joel. Finally, he was a sage confidant. He heard me out and offered frank feedback on what I was trying to do, and how it was going to come across. Bottom line: he made our leadership team more effective, and found ways for us to get things done.

Michael Panarisi, Colonel, United States Air Force

I’ve had the opportunity to work with Joel on multiple occasions throughout our career including him serving as my deputy while he at the same time handled the bulk of our media work. Quite frankly, he is the best public relations practitioner I’ve seen in my entire career, both in government and in the private sector. Daily, he coupled innovation with hard work to ensure the messages of our organization were told helping to bring new business to our center. In a difficult time, he brilliantly led our center’s communications effort with the local community and media, turning what could have been a negative story into public support for our efforts. His ability to recognize opportunities and then execute to deliver results is second to none. I’ve seen him demonstrate this skill at virtually all levels in the Air Force from the center or base level on up to headquarters. His leadership inspired not only those he supervised, but also his peers and superiors to strive toward greater achievement. Without a doubt, Joel is that rare individual that couples special talent and wisdom with a tremendous work ethic and makes even the most daunting challenge look easy. I expect even greater things in the future from Joel and hope you get the chance to see them as well!

Maj. Tim White, retired, United States Air Force

Joel Fortner is very focused and goal oriented. He always cares about the team and an outcome where all can succeed. He is the ultimate team player.

Libby VanHook, GS-14, United States Air Force

In my work with Joel Fortner I must say the record of results he has achieved in the Public Affairs arena has been impressive. I have worked closely with him on a number of high-visibility and/or sensitive issues and his skills and professionalism were always in evidence. Many of the problems we faced together were varied in scope and unique in their circumstances requiring flexibility, creativity in crafting effective responses, and all the while ensuring absolute integrity in process and content. As a senior Air Force leader facing any number and sort of possible public relations scenarios, I can say without caveat that I would always welcome Joel on my team to face and overcome whatever challenge is thrown our way. Whether dealing deftly with a hostile press or delivering a needed message to a target audience, Joel can be counted on to provide the right information in the right format at the right time.

Arthur F. Huber II, Colonel, United States Air Force