Paula R. Kahn

Returning to Chicago in 1999 after a 12-year hiatus, Paula Kahn retired from her 30-year career in advertising and put her credentials to work for the benefit of a number of Chicago not-for-profit cultural institutions and social service organizations on a strictly pro bono basis.

Her business background includes account management positions with some of the best known names in the advertising agency world of the 70’s, 80’s and 90’s, including her start at Benton & Bowles in New York, followed by nine years at J. Walter Thompson in Chicago; then out to Hal Riney & Partners in San Francisco, and back to New York as an executive vice-president at Wells Rich Greene.

Working with many of the nation’s blue chip clients, including Procter & Gamble, Johnson’s Wax, The Kellogg’s Company, Sara Lee, MCI, Dun & Bradstreet, and leading banks in each of the three cities, Paula made her mark through her passion for creativity, her problem solving skills and her focus on insuring that the products and brands she managed were distinctly positioned in their respective markets to attract consumers’ attention and loyalty.

The trend toward global brands and global marketing led Paula overseas in 1991. Working first for J. Walter Thompson in Bangkok, Thailand and then with Lowe-Lintas in London, Paula served as Worldwide Planning Director for over a dozen major Unilever brands distributed across regions and around the globe.

The trajectory of her transition from global business executive to Chicago volunteer to civic activist began with a project for the Chicago Children's Museum in 2002. As part of the museum's efforts to effectively position the CCM within Chicago’s competitive museum environment, Paula crafted a new strategic mission and vision for the museum. The mission continues to drive programming and operating decisions at this outstanding institution of informal learning and early childhood education and is visible throughout the museum and in all its communications materials.

At the same time, Paula was involved with the Chicago Humanities Festival on the development of their inaugural Friends program for individual donors; with Chicago Public Radio/WBEZ on a new strategic direction for their membership program which resulted in an over 100% increase in the average per member annual pledge; served on the Boards of Directors of the Park West Community Association and the Midwest Region of the American Jewish Congress. Shortly thereafter, she took on volunteer roles in strategic planning projects with Big Brothers Big Sisters of Metropolitan Chicago’s Advisory Board; and Family Focus, where she helped launch one of their fastest growing initiatives, a program to support Grandparents Raising Grandchildren in several of the city’s most at-risk neighborhoods.

Her current projects include working with Chicago Public Art Group and 43rd Ward Alderman to create and install a Community Mosaic at the Fullerton Avenue underpass at Lake Shore Drive; and ongoing associations with the Young Women’s Leadership Charter School, the city’s only all-girl public high school; Project Exploration, an after-school and summer science education program for minority youth and girls; and the Chicago Sister-Cities International Program Casablanca Committee round out her portfolio.