Rethink global CSO Sean McDonald, left, and PR head Meredith Burns.

Rethink has officially launched a full-service public relations offering under the leadership of Sean McDonald, global chief strategy officer, and Meredith Burns, head of public relations.

Rethink has already been recognized for PR work including a Gold in Strategy’s PR Agency of the Year program, as well as a PR Campaign of the Year for Molson Coors’ “See my Name.”

Rethink PR supports many of the agency’s clients including Molson, McCain, WestJet and Scotiabank on a project basis, as well as Tangerine and A&W on an always-on basis.

“Rethink PR is both the name of our public relations practice and a call to action for brands and agencies alike,” McDonald says. “We see an obvious opportunity to think beyond the conventional approach we see time and again.”

Rethink launched Brand Narrative in 2022, a division within Rethink built on the premise that advertising, PR and content have converged.

Under the leadership of Meredith Montgomery (now the managing director at GroupSJR), the Brand Narrative team grew and expanded its capabilities. The pivot to Rethink PR represents a “fundamental shift in thinking” from a team that provides public relations support as an extension to the advertising business that offers end-to-end public relations support.

The national PR team across Toronto, Montreal and Vancouver includes Matt Milne, group account director (formerly Weber Shandwick); Sara Lemmermeyer, account director; Chenda McKissick, account director (formerly Pomp & Circumstance); Kristel Dupont, account director (formerly Sid Lee), Jacky Le, account director (formerly Citizen Relations); and a team of specialists, coordinators and strategic advisors rounding out the team of almost 20.