LISA SWANBERG, MSLS, PMP

“Public relations is an industry with enormous power to influence beliefs and behaviors of people. This is a huge responsibility and one that Vanguard takes very seriously. I am proud to be a part of an organization that applies its talent to educating and raising awareness about health topics in order to change behaviors and improve the health of all people.”

Memorable professional moments:

• Establishing a new information center for an NIH agency to communicate its research on child health and human development to the public.
• Creating methods and capacity to respond to hundreds of thousands of inquiries from the public about substance abuse and mental health prevention and treatment.
• Launching a new web site with information and resources about mental health to empower individuals and families dealing with mental health problems.

People often find it interesting that …
I consider myself the “accidental consultant.” After my undergraduate studies in international relations, I became interested in the power of technology for the purposes of information exchange and dissemination. Not related at all! After earning a Master’s degree in library and information sciences, I landed a position in the healthcare arena and from there to the world of federal contracts. More than 25 years later, I’m still helping to raise awareness and educating the public about disease prevention and health promotion.

What people-first means to me
Everything we do at Vanguard has the ability to make a positive impact on the lives of others. People-first drives all of our decisions in all areas of the business and at all levels of the company. I enjoy coming to work every day to meet this challenge with like-minded people who execute it with creativity, responsibility and heart.

My credentials

• B.S., International Relations, American University; concentration: Latin American Studies and Spanish
• MSLS, Library and Information Sciences, The Catholic University of America
• PMP Certified since 2008 (Project Management Professional)