What People Are Saying
“Absolutely phenomenal. PLEASE come back!”
— Student, Princeton Master’s Degree Program
“As a journalist, I have always been the one asking questions. But when Afghanistan collapsed in mid-August and our story was published on the cover of Time Magazine, I was overwhelmed by the interview requests. It was Kimberly Abbott who came to my rescue; she not only helped me to respond to all the emails and arrange the interviews but trained me to be confident and deliver to the best of my ability. She spent hours listening to my delivery while suggesting the best way to make my points. Because of her help, I can now appear confidently in any interview and panel discussion.
Thank you for having my back.”
— Zahra Nader, Editor in Chief of Zan News, Afghan journalist, 2021
“Kim is the secret behind so many leaders' success. She is a master media trainer and a total pro at getting her clients on-air and ready to deliver a sharp, authentic, and effective message.”
—Xanthe Scharff, Phd., Entrepreneur and Co-founder, The Fuller Project
“This was my favorite professional development experience at SPIA so far. Thank you so, so much! Would love to do something like this again.”
— Student, Princeton Master’s Degree Program
“Kim’s presence and sage advice on how to handle media made us feel confident and prepared to speak out about the crisis situation in Afghanistan. She helped train our Afghan female advocate on how to steer interviews and deflect questions she was not comfortable answering for major network shows like Good Morning America. We could not be more impressed or grateful for her expertise!”
— Taylor Smith, Executive Director, Free to Run
“l am hearing the most amazing, unsolicited reports from the team in London about your media training. They are being so effusive about how valuable and important their time with you was! Thank you so, so much! You guys are so good, you make me look good for knowing you and bringing you into our orbit!”
— Courtney Lobel, Senior Director, Development and Communications, Relief International
“Linda is one of the most dynamic communications leaders I’ve ever met. She is energetic, creative, and unstoppable — and also just a pleasure to work with. She understands the broadcast media, since she spent so much of her career at CNN, but she also understands how to think strategically about engaging people across different sectors beyond broadcast media — from print journalists to policymakers and from researchers to decision-makers. And she’s the kind of leader others enjoy working with.”
— Andrew Selee, President, Migration Policy Institute
“Our students continue to rave about your media training last week!”
— Darcie Draudt, PhD, Postdoctoral Fellow, George Washington Institute of Korea Studies at the Elliott School of International Affairs
“We literally cannot thank you enough for working with [our analyst] yesterday. The presentation she gave today to our donors incorporated pretty much every piece of feedback you gave her. She soaked up your training like a sponge, and her outstanding performance today was a direct result of your influence. THANK YOU!!! We are super grateful to you for taking us on as a client and helping our field staff in this meaningful way. You two are superstars!”
— Josie Coxon, Deputy Director Communications & Development, Relief International
“Kimberly is an incredible communications and media trainer. I simply wouldn’t use anyone else! She’s particularly effective at listening to the story of the organization and creating compelling messaging and talking points that resonate with a variety of stakeholders. The nonprofit I previously worked with brought her in on several occasions to help us hone our organizational messaging, advise our communications staff on strategic projects, and train our directors and researchers to more effectively communicate our core messages with media. She worked with staff members who had never done media up to seasoned pros. She’s wonderfully flexible and a joy to work with! I give her my highest recommendation!”
— Marla Keenan, former Executive Director, CIVIC, Board Member, The Truman Project
“Working with Kim Abbott has transformed the way I talk about my work. Together we crafted and honed my message, and now I communicate my expertise in a much more accessible, clear, and memorable way. From preparing for video and audio to following up with feedback on those recordings, Kim’s work is experienced, professional, and consequential! While my original purpose was to prepare for specific interviews, I find that her training has also influenced my ability to speak in public audiences. I would recommend her training to anyone seeking to improve their communication skills!”
— Denise Ho, Associate Professor, Yale University
“Kimberly is quite simply one of the best media and communications professionals I have come across. Able, professional, quick, thoughtful, fearless, innovative and eminently wise, she did a fantastic job promoting Crisis Group and its policy recommendations to the media. She operated very thoughtfully in a competitive and difficult environment, skillfully managing a variety of tasks and earning the loyalty of colleagues. Not only does she have an extensive array of contacts but they take her very seriously. She has a significant knowledge of international issues, policymaking in the US government and the operations of the media. She is a skilled writer, trainer and producer and a great colleague.”
— Robert Templer, Senior consultant, United Nations
“I highly recommend Kim to anyone seeking media training. When I published my first book, she trained me from a “TV novice” to regularly being invited to appear on outlets including: CNBC, Bloomberg, Al Jazeera, CGTV and others. Her training helped build my confidence early on, as well as provide me with an actionable ‘toolkit” of techniques for controlling an interview that I continue to use to this day. Kim was a pleasure to work with through the entire process - from training sessions to ongoing feedback early on. Her expertise and training were key to getting me “media ready” - she’s a pro that anyone would be lucky to have an opportunity to work with.”
— Joel Backaler, Global Tech and Professional Services Executive, Author
