Jill Rose
Editor in Chief
American Executive
900 Cummings Center, Suite 216-U
Beverly, MA 01915
978-232-9494
www.americanexecutive.com
jrose@redcoatpublishing.com

-> Reach

Readership of 50,000 top-level executives

-> Rose's background

Rose came to American Executive from the US edition of The Manufacturer, a magazine owned by Conquest Business Media, which she helped launch. Her editing background is in high-tech, with past jobs including Cutter Consortium and eWeek (back when it was PC Week).

She lives in Marblehead, Mass., where she likes to sail in the summer and ski in the winter, and she has "two beautiful daughters."

-> Current editorial coverage

Brand-spanking new, American Executive just launched with the September issue. It aims to give senior executives expert advice from others in their fields.

Topics covered break down into these categories each month:

Management
Marketing
Technology
Leadership best practices
Global strategies
Finance/legal (alternating months)

"We try to cover things strategically and to get advice from the best thinkers in those areas," says Rose.

The magazine also includes Corporate Spotlights, case studies focusing on lesser-known companies rather than the big "hot companies" that everyone else already profiles. "They have interesting things to say in terms of strategy," Rose says.

Rose tries to ensure that readers get at least one useful take-away from each and every article in the magazine, no matter what industry they're in.

-> How to pitch Rose

"I much prefer to be pitched by email than any other way," she says. "It allows for the person pitching to give the whole story, and for me to look at it when I'm not busy."

She always looks at her emails within a day or two, often in the late afternoon "when I'm not feeling creative," she says.

If you don't hear back from her in a few days (but you should, as she tries to respond to everyone pretty quickly), give her a call to see what's up.

She's happy to take your phone pitch, too. "It's an interruption but it's not the end of the world, and it's kind of nice to make a connection and make a decision right there," she explains.

-> What Rose looks for in a story pitch

Practical advice, thought-leaders, new trends.

Three hints when pitching Rose:

Hint #1. Be succinct
"It's a fine line," says Rose. "You don't want to be so brief that I have no idea what you're talking about, but I don't want it to take an hour to read."

Hint #2. Let Rose know what category you're pitch falls into
"It's hard for PR people to know where your story might fit, but take a stab," she says.

Hint #3. Pitch her an idea for her editor's letter
"I try to say something thought-provoking. I try to make it valuable," says Rose.

She talks about new technologies and trends, so often ideas that aren't right for a case study or expert opinion piece might fit in there, she says.

In fact, this is a prime opportunity: "I don't think I've ever had a pitch that says, 'hey, here's a great idea for your editor's letter,'" Rose says.

-> Pet peeves

Just this one: "Don't leave long messages" when pitching by phone. "If I'm accessing messages remotely, that's a pain."

-> Deadlines

About three months in advance.

-> What Rose looks for in printed press materials

"I look at everything, whether it's mail or email. If it's just a press release, it takes me two seconds to read the first paragraph to see if it's appropriate."

-> What Rose looks for in online press rooms

Rose has bookmarked online press rooms for about 15 corporations. "I picked them somewhat randomly, but there's a reason why each of them are in there," she says.

Every week or two she checks all of them, one after another, to see if there's anything new.

For example, she has all three major automotive manufacturers bookmarked. "A lot of what business does seems to be reflected in the automakers," she says.

She follows JetBlue because she did a cover story on them for the first issue and "I think they're fresh."

She's got Nike on there, because she wanted a retailer.

If you've got a great press room, it's worth a try to email her and let her know about it. "I'm not sure that pitching me for those would work, but I don't know because nobody ever did it," she says.

-> Where you can meet Rose

"I try to go to leadership-type and technology conferences that have a business twist or angle," she says. "I just went to a conference at MIT which was put on by MIT Technology Review magazine."

She'll also be at a Women in Leadership conference in November, she says.

Much of what she attends is based on geography -- places easily accessible from Boston. If you find her at a conference, definitely approach her: that's what she's there for.

"With any luck," she says, she attends "conferences that senior execs will be at. I like to engage them in conversation to find out what their issues are, where their pain is."

-> A final word

If you're new to the PR world, or just hate pitching reporters, Rose is a good one to approach.

"PR people are just trying to do their jobs. If I can't be receptive to pitches all the time because I'm so overwhelmed, then I'm not really functioning well, because a big part of my job is to be thinking and learning and looking at trends," she says.

"You can't do that if you're cranky and tired."