Focus

As a founding partner of Qorvis Communications, Doug Poretz brings more than four decades of broad public relations experience, including 20-plus years of focused experience in investor relations, enterprise valuation issues, and corporate communications and positioning.  

In 1991, after serving in senior corporate communications positions for three Greater Washington-based, publicly-owned companies, and with what was then a rare belief that the region’s business community would grow significantly, he founded Douglas Poretz, Ltd -- the only investor relations firm based in the region. That one-person business eventually expanded into The Poretz Group and later became one of the major components in the startup of Qorvis.

Poretz has been intimately involved in helping to grow organizations from startups to large cap, from local to multinational, and from basic industries to the most advanced technology.  He has in-depth experience in virtually every communications challenge, from product launches to branding and public affairs campaigns.  He acquired a deep understanding of critical business matters from his investor relations experience, which exposed him to the pressures that confront senior management teams as well as the deliberation process of outside investors.  His specific experience includes corporate positioning and re-positioning efforts, branding and re-branding campaigns; private offerings as well as IPOs and secondary offerings of debt and equity; announcements of such major events as mergers and acquisitions, corporate strategy changes and Chapter 11 filings.  He is often asked to speak or be quoted on various public relations topics.

Pertinent Background & Relationships

• Co-founded Qorvis Communications, LLC in August 2000.
• Founded The Poretz Group in 1991, a strategic investor relations firm focusing on the challenges associated with technology and New Economy companies.
• Vice President for Corporate Affairs at NVR, Inc., 1985 to 1990, an American Stock Exchange-listed company, which grew from its 1985 IPO as a small regional builder to become the largest homebuilding company in the nation.
• Led Corporate Communications and served on the Management Committees at Planning Research Corporation (PRC) and Flow General Inc., both New York Stock Exchange-listed companies.
• Formed his own generalist public relations firm based in Washington DC in 1975, and grew it until its sale in 1980. The firm represented economic development agencies, trade and professional associations as well as a variety of businesses.
• Began his career as Public Information Officer for the Alexandria (VA) City Public Schools, for which he coordinated the community relations programs for the integration of secondary schools (basis for “Remember the Titans” movie) and elementary schools (which effort The New York Times cited in an editorial as a model for the nation.)
• Active, often assuming leadership roles in business and civic/charitable organizations.  He served for several years on the Board and Executive Committee to the Northern Virginia Technology Council, also serving as its public relations advisor, and now as a senior advisor.  He also helped create The Northern Virginia Healthcare Workforce Alliance, serving on its initial steering committee and board.  It is perhaps the nation’s most successful effort to address severe current and emerging workforce shortages in healthcare.
• Formerly, Vice Chair and Executive Committee of The Northern Virginia Roundtable, one of the region’s most important organizations for business leaders.  As a member of the Roundtable, he created and chaired the Capital Region Technology Investor Conferences of 1997 and 1998 as well as the 1995, 1998 and 2001 “Northern Virginia Dinners,” which are recognized as important events in the image and growth of the technology community of Northern Virginia.
• Featured speaker at major investor relations conferences from New York to Los Angeles as well as at numerous conferences for entrepreneurs and business executives concerned about how to access the capital markets.  Frequently quoted as an expert by business publications. 

Education

Poretz graduated from George Washington University in 1967 with a B.A. in Philosophy.