Steven Smith
Partner
Steven Smith is a seasoned strategic communications professional who brings to Noble Strategic Partners and its valued clients 20 years of experience delivering results for private- and public-sector organizations across an array of verticals, including agriculture, airline, architecture, business advocacy/associations, education, financial services, global engineering and development, healthcare (bio-pharmaceutical, medical device, EHR, physician collaboration platform, others) mobility, professional sports, retail chains (grocery), shipping/port, high-technology, telecommunications, veterans services, and utilities (electric, gas, and water) among others.
Steven helps organizations of all sizes navigate through high-stakes, high-profile situations across multiple communications disciplines with particular expertise in crisis communications, issues management, game-changing new product launches, stakeholder relations, M&A, reputation management, litigation support, and public affairs.
Previously, Steven held the position of senior vice president and partner at Fleishman-Hillard (FH), one of the world’s leading strategic communications agencies. Through the course of his 13-year FH tenure, Steven played instrumental roles for a variety of clients – from Fortune 10 to some of the fastest-growing companies in the nation. During this time, Steven served as a senior in-house communications executive at AT&T, FH’s largest client for the better part of a decade. In this role, he led communications teams responsible for the Western and Southeast regions of the U.S. at the $160+ billion multinational Fortune 10 company.
During his tenure servicing AT&T, Steven led communications activities surrounding many high-profile transactions, including the launch of the original iPhone, the AT&T/SBC merger, AT&T’s acquisition of BellSouth and subsequent rebranding of Cingular Wireless to AT&T, and AT&T’s proposed $39 billion acquisition of T-Mobile USA.
Steven began his career in state government as a field representative for former California Assembly Floor Leader Richard Katz where he served as the member’s primary district representative. Steven holds a Master of Public Policy degree from the University of Southern California with an area of concentration of media and communications policy. His undergraduate degree is in political science from California State University, Northridge.
Based in the San Francisco area, Steven is originally from Sherman Oaks, California. He and his wife and two children live San Mateo, but the L.A. native’s heart is never far from Chavez Ravine.