It all started with a hopeless campaign to elect a Democrat in a deeply red district in my hometown of Bakersfield, CA. I was 16 and took the loss hard, but I was hooked on progressive politics and in awe of the power of smart communications.  So I studied politics in college and dove right into environmental campaigns.  Ever since, I’ve worked on progressive issues as a campaigner, consultant, and foundation leader.

You can see my various job titles on LinkedIn, but here’s a one sentence summary: I’ve spent 20 years figuring out how to make communications effective and 10 years figuring out how to make organizations effective. The James Irvine Foundation was my professional home from 2005-2020, first focused on communications, and then, as Vice President and COO, focused on change management, organizational strategy, and executive leadership.  I founded Silverman Strategies in 2021 with the belief that my experiences (the mistakes as much as the successes) can help progressive organizations operate more effectively and taste victory more often. Examples of work I’m proud of can be found in my Case Studies. 

I’ve lived in San Francisco since 1992. My daughter is a doctoral student in physics at UC Irvine. My son has a bachelor’s degree in environmental studies from UC Santa Cruz and now leads outdoor recreation trips for schools and other youth organizations. I have more hobbies than I can keep up with, including performing improv, acting in Bay Area theatre, doing crossword puzzles, and passionately following sports teams that mostly lose, including my beloved Everton Football Club.