Caliber Q&A with Jacqueline Silva, Managing Director

Our President, Grace Keith Rodriguez *virtually* sat down with our new Senior Advisor, Jacqueline Silva to dig more into her background, what she’s excited about at Caliber and more.

Grace: What has it been like starting amidst a fully remote environment?

Jacqueline: It’s been an experience I know I’ll never forget. Like everyone, my life has changed drastically since March – my entire life is now completely taking place out of my one-bedroom apartment in Kips Bay. The silver lining of it all is that my friendships in this city have deepened, and similarly, that I’ve had the privilege of joining the Caliber team at this moment in time. A time where we’ve deepened our team bond and have become even more motivated to support each other and our clients. That said, I am very excited to leave this apartment and meet everyone in person one day hopefully soon!

Grace: What attracted you to Caliber?

Jacqueline: The people. I’ve been searching for the right team for over a decade, and I know I’ve found it here at Caliber. I’ve known several team members for years and always knew that we shared the same approach to communications and management. I feel fortunate that the timing worked out, and I’m excited to be rolling up my sleeves to contribute to the team and our clients.

Grace: Is this the career path you envisioned for yourself when you “grew up?”

Jacqueline: It is in a way. Growing up in Texas, I envisioned myself living in a big city with my own apartment. I never thought of what type of job I’d be doing. But, I did make it to a big city and now I’m living every day in this apartment – even if that wasn’t part of the original dream!

Grace: What are you focused on for Q2?

Jacqueline: My near-term focus is to support our clients through this time with airtight, yet adaptable communications strategies. I’m also excited to get to know our team even better and to amplify our reach to help even more fintech and financial services firms. Over my career, I’ve honed the skill of creating and executing communications strategies that help companies reach their short and long-term goals, be it recruitment, new client acquisition, M&A activity, fundraising, or AUM growth. In my role at Caliber and with the support of our team of pros, I’m looking to make sure we offer these strategies at scale, helping even more companies succeed.

Grace: What can companies do to build and maintain awareness about their brand amidst the COVID-19 environment?

Jacqueline: With COVID-19, there is no one-size-fits-all marketing approach. Companies must create marketing and communications strategies that are unique to their offering and their clients’ journeys through this time. We advise our clients to read the room. Is your offering helping people through this time, and how? What are your target audiences feeling and thinking right now? How can we support and add value? And then, we focus on building messaging around these answers.

We are recommending highly adaptable and integrated communications campaigns that are linked with sales activities when relevant. In these times, the news changes over the course of the day, and companies need to be ready to pivot and adapt their campaigns, and we are here to make that happen.

Grace: What advice would you give to someone who’s just starting out in this field?

Jacqueline: Read a lot and develop your writing skills. The bedrock of this job is communication. You must be a voracious reader of the news, noting the angles, tone, and frequency, as well as an expert writer and editor that can convey a message with ease and in any voice.

Grace: What excites you most about marketing and PR?

Jacqueline: I genuinely love what I do. I’m a storyteller, and I feel lucky that I’ve found a career where I can lean into stories. I’m also an economic policy history nerd. Bretton Woods, Panic of 1893, Tulip Mania, I can’t get enough! So, the ability to do my craft in this industry is incredible. I feel privileged to be able to help give a voice to the good people in the financial and fintech industries and look forward to continuing to do so with our Caliber team!