Kelly Wallace is Chief Operating Officer and a member of the Executive Committee of TrailRunner International. Kelly joined the firm as Managing Director in 2019 and led the New York team before becoming COO. She works with a diverse group of clients, from Fortune 500 companies to startups, on areas of corporate and executive reputation, media relations and strategy, special situations, crisis management and influencer engagement.

Kelly is an award-winning journalist and communications leader, bringing more than 20 years of media and communications experience to TrailRunner International. Her distinguished career in communications includes print and broadcast television and, for the past decade, leadership in the digital space driving innovation at CNN and iVillage, one of the first digital content and community platforms for women.

Kelly’s deep media experience includes serving as a network television news correspondent covering The White House, the Middle East, and political campaigns for CNN; national news for CBS; and the State Department for Fox News. At CNN, she was part of the network’s Peabody and DuPont Award-winning team coverage of Hurricane Katrina and the South Asian tsunami disaster, respectively.

Kelly became increasingly interested in the future of digital media, and in 2008, moved to iVillage to serve as executive director of digital video and the channel’s first-ever chief correspondent. In this role, she led the video team, served as iVillage’s spokeswoman and conducted high-profile content interviews, including with then-First Lady Michelle Obama. In 2012, she received a Gracie Award as Outstanding Digital Correspondent.

Just prior to joining TrailRunner, Kelly was a digital correspondent and editor-at-large for CNN (her third stint at the network), driving innovation around parenting and women’s content. She is a frequent moderator and speaker at events and high-profile panels for women.

Kelly graduated magna cum laude from the Wharton School at the University of Pennsylvania (BS, Economics). She is a member of Women in America, a professional development and mentoring program for executive women. She lives in New York City with her husband and two teenaged daughters.