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Senior fractional Media Relations Managers for B2B SaaS, PE portfolios, cybersecurity, AI, financial services, and consumer brands. Editor relationships, story architecture, embargo discipline, exclusive coordination, and post-coverage amplification, built and run by a senior operator with named journalist relationships.
The biggest difference between a media relations engagement that works and one that stalls: whether the operator actually knows the journalists on the pitch list. Our fractional Media Relations Managers have placed clients in the Wall Street Journal, Axios, Forbes, Fortune, Bloomberg TV, CNBC, Adweek, Glossy, and the security/fintech trades by name, relationships built over 20+ years at the top financial, tech, and consumer press.
Most pitches fail because there's no story architecture under them. A media relations operator builds the master narrative first, proof points, message house, audience-specific variants, then operates every individual pitch against that source of truth. Editors read the pitch because it's pre-built against the story they're already covering, not generic outbound.
Big stories don't just happen, they're orchestrated. Exclusive negotiations with tier-one outlets, embargo coordination across multiple journalists, post-coverage amplification across owned channels. Our Media Relations Managers run these mechanics as operating discipline, not improvisation.
Media relations is the sub-discipline of Public Relations that focuses on earned coverage, getting your company's story into press, trades, broadcast, and analyst outlets. It's adjacent to but distinct from broader PR (which also includes internal comms, executive thought leadership, crisis response, and brand-trust work). When the gap is specifically earned-media execution, the pitches, the relationships, the placements, a fractional Media Relations Manager is the right answer.
The engagement starts with a relationship audit. Which journalists at which outlets cover companies in your category? Which of those does our operator already have a working relationship with? Which can we warm up via mutual contacts? The output is a named-journalist target list, typically 30 to 60 names across tier-one, tier-two, and trade press, with a one-line angle per journalist. In parallel, we build the story architecture: master narrative, proof points, audience-specific variants. By day 30 the pitch infrastructure is operational.
Pitching is a cycle, not a one-off. Each story moves through a defined process: angle development, journalist match, embargo negotiation, exclusive deployment, post-coverage amplification, follow-up for next-story candidacy. Our Media Relations Managers run two to four story cycles per month at this intensity. Big launches and milestone moments get the exclusive-with-tier-one treatment (one journalist gets the story first, in exchange for depth of coverage); ongoing announcements run as embargo-coordinated multi-journalist drops.
For categories with flagship industry conferences, RSA in cybersecurity, HIMSS in healthcare, NRF in retail, CES in consumer tech, the conference is where the year's media-relations program either lands or doesn't. We've run conference-specific programs that take a company from "RSA frustration" (the brand is invisible at the show despite years of attendance) to "RSA media domination" (analyst briefings booked, on-floor press meetings stacked, coverage across the security trade press). The Stellar Cyber engagement (featured below) is one example.
Some engagements are a fractional manager doing the work. Others are an interim function-builder, hiring framework for the eventual full-time media-relations manager, agency-of-record decisions, monitoring tooling, measurement framework, operating cadence. The handoff at the end of the engagement is to a permanent hire or to a scoped agency partner.
Most engagements bundle four to seven of these workstreams, scoped against the company's earned-media goals.
| Feature | Chameleon Media Relations Manager | PR agency on retainer | Junior in-house PR hire |
|---|---|---|---|
| Named-journalist relationships | 20+ years of relationships across WSJ, Bloomberg, CNBC, Axios, security/fintech trades | Press database + outbound; senior Partner attends pitch only | Whatever the hire brings; usually thinner |
| Story architecture | Built first, pitches operate against it | Often generic; varies by account | Inconsistent during ramp |
| Exclusive + embargo discipline | Operated as standard practice | Variable by account team | Learning curve |
| Conference-program execution | Multi-conference experience (RSA, HIMSS, NRF, CES) | Conference work as scoped project | One conference at a time |
| Time to active | 1-2 weeks (relationship audit + story architecture) | 2-4 weeks ramp | 2-3 months ramp |
| Engagement length | 3-12 months scoped to outcome | Indefinite retainer | Indefinite (full-time) |
| Cost structure | $10K-$30K per month, scope-dependent | $10K-$30K per month + activation + tools | $80K-$140K loaded annually |
| Right fit when | You need senior earned-media execution without agency overhead | You have ongoing PR budget + strong in-house oversight | You have predictable earned-media demand to justify FTE |
Common questions from CMOs, CCOs, founders, and PR Directors evaluating a fractional Media Relations Manager engagement.
A Media Relations Manager is focused on the earned-media sub-discipline, journalist relationships, pitch development, story placement, conference programs. A PR Director has broader scope that also includes executive thought leadership, crisis preparedness, internal comms coordination, and PR-function operating discipline. Most companies need both eventually; many companies start with media relations because the earned-media gap is the most visible.
Three to twelve months. Conference-run-up engagements scope tighter (6-12 weeks pre-conference + 4 weeks post). Ongoing earned-media programs run 6-12 months with quarterly scope-and-budget reviews. Crisis-driven engagements can run as short as 2-8 weeks of intensive support.
The scoping call maps your vertical (cyber, fintech, AI, B2B SaaS, PE-portfolio, consumer, regulated), the journalists and outlets that matter for your category, and the upcoming moments (launches, conferences, milestone announcements). We route to the operator whose relationship inventory matches: Michelle Barry leads cyber/AI/fintech/PE; Holly Thomas leads consumer/retail/beauty/brand-trust; Scott Monty leads marketing-comms and crisis-adjacent; Erika Goldwater leads B2B SaaS.
Most engagements run $10K-$30K per month, scoped to outcome. The lower end is a single-moment program (conference run-up, single product launch); the upper end is multi-stream programs running in parallel (ongoing earned media + executive thought-leadership + conference program). We quote a fixed monthly fee after the scoping conversation.
Either. Many engagements layer the fractional Media Relations Manager above an existing agency, the operator writes the briefs, the agency executes the volume work, the Manager holds the agency accountable to the strategy. Other engagements replace the agency when the agency is the constraint. The diagnostic in the first two weeks tells us which model fits.
Yes, conference programs are a Media Relations Manager specialty. The Stellar Cyber RSA engagement (featured above) is one example; we've run similar programs at HIMSS, NRF, CES, Money 20/20, and other industry-flagship conferences. The work scopes as a 6-12 week pre-conference engagement plus 4 weeks of post-conference follow-up.
Both. Crisis media relations is where the relationship inventory matters most, when something breaks, you need journalists who already know the operator and trust the source. Our Media Relations Managers coordinate with the broader crisis-comms operating discipline (war-room cadence, executive prep, message tree) and own the journalist side of the response. For active crises, we can be in the operating discipline within 24-48 hours.
Directly. Chameleon Collective is a senior-only collective, no account-management layer between you and the operator. The fractional Media Relations Manager is the person on the journalist calls, the analyst briefings, the pre-pitch prep with your executives.
Some teams need a fractional Media Relations Manager for a scoped program or conference run-up. Others are ready to hire a permanent in-house Director of Media Relations or VP of Communications. Our Recruit practice runs retained executive search for senior PR and media-relations leaders, short list in 14-21 days, fixed-cap retained search, 12-month replacement guarantee.
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Tell us the conference, the announcement, or the ongoing program. We'll route to the operator whose journalist relationships match your category.
Media relations engagements supporting PE-backed portfolio companies through reputation moments, B2B SaaS and cybersecurity vendors through earned-media program builds, consumer and retail brands through marquee media moments, and growth-stage companies establishing first-time press programs.
Tell us the category, the journalists you want to reach, and the moment. Industry-conference run-up, product launch, executive thought-leadership program, ongoing earned-media cadence. We'll route to the operator whose relationship inventory matches.
Schedule a conversationSpotlight
A deeper read on a few of the operators above: who they are and what they bring.
PR | Social Responsibility
20+ years of senior PR and media-relations leadership across corporate, agency, and nonprofit. 12 years at Macy's leading consumer media relations for the brand's marquee global moments, Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade (the largest single-day broadcast media event in the United States) and Macy's 4th of July Fireworks. Launched high-profile fashion and home brands into national media coverage. Recently served an 18-month interim Head of Communications role at Mielle Organics through the brand's P&G acquisition, including media-relations strategy through a viral social-media controversy.
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PR Strategy: Private Equity
20 years of senior media-relations leadership across cybersecurity, AI, fintech, B2B SaaS, and Private Equity verticals. Built and led the cybersecurity media-relations practices at three global PR agencies (LEWIS PR, Davies Murphy Group, BridgeView Marketing) before becoming a Chameleon Partner. Client portfolio includes Sophos, Tufin, Cato Networks, Black Lotus, Allure Security, with placements across SC Magazine, Dark Reading, Hacker News, Info Security Magazine, plus business press (WSJ, NYT, Bloomberg, USA Today, CNBC, TechCrunch).
View profileFeatured Case Study
Stellar Cyber
Stellar Cyber had fired four PR agencies in three years. Coverage was weak. Urgency was missing. With RSA approaching, the team needed more than press releases. They needed a clear strategy, stronger messaging, and media attention that would reach the right buyers—lean security teams and MSSPs—and drive growth.
We began by embedding with Stellar Cyber’s product and sales leaders to clarify what set them apart. We interviewed customers and partners to ground the story in proof, not claims. A competitive media audit revealed an unfocused narrative. We narrowed the target to two priority audiences: mid-sized enterprise security teams and Managed Security Service Providers. From there, we built a disciplined earned media plan timed to RSA. Company news created momentum. Customer stories added credibility. Thought leadership elevated executives. Awards reinforced validation. Each element supported a sharper, more consistent market position.
During the month of RSA, Stellar Cyber secured more than 700 media mentions and 885 million impressions, with coverage in Forbes, CRN, Dark Reading, Security Week, and others. Within three months, share of voice increased 24%. A year later, the CMO called Chameleon Collective the “Best PR team we’ve ever had.”
“Stellar Cyber had attended RSA, the cybersecurity industry's flagship conference, for years without breaking through. The Chameleon Media Relations engagement rebuilt the program ground-up: relationship audit across the security trade press, story architecture matched to RSA's editorial moment, analyst briefings booked in advance, embargo coordination across multiple outlets. The result was front-page coverage in tier-one security press and the brand's first dominant RSA, exactly what a fractional Media Relations Manager builds.”
CMO, Stellar Cyber
July 1, 2025
The communications landscape is messier than ever. Algorithms shift daily. News cycles collapse in hours. Audiences are fragmented across platforms. A single tweet can undermine months of work, while a quiet, credible story might be what
April 29, 2019
Excellent feedback is the key to succeeding on Amazon’s platform. Source The quality of your reviews is one of the most significant factors determining the placement of your listing on Amazon. Products with excellent reviews
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