Emily Shirden

Senior Vice President, Health Services & Technology Practice Co-Lead

Emily Shirden leads Jarrard’s Health Services & Technology practice. She brings to clients a passion for developing strategic communications strategies, as well as assessing and building teams and processes to execute that vision and efficiently deliver measurable results.

With nearly 20 years of experience providing communications counsel to large, complex clients across healthcare, including pharmaceutical companies, payors, academic medical centers and health systems, she has built and led large, remote teams through complex industry and organizational change. In her time at Jarrard, she has led high-profile leadership transitions, significant mergers, the launch of a large, regional health system brand and award-winning DEI and community partnership endeavors.

Shirden joined the firm in 2020 from Finn Partners, where she led the firm’s longtime partnership with Michigan’s largest health insurer, Blue Cross Blue Shield of Michigan. Under her leadership, the team executed a customer-centered communications strategy harnessing paid, earned and owned channels to empower consumers to make smart healthcare decisions and strengthen the connection between Blue Cross and its members amid the roll-out of the Affordable Care Act. Social community listening and sophisticated digital content performance dashboards informed content themes for local market television segments, digital content and executive thought leadership.

Based initially with Finn Partners in Chicago, Shirden relocated to Detroit in 2014 to launch the firm’s office there. She grew that operation to roughly 20 full-time communications professionals servicing some of the city’s most exciting projects and longstanding brands.

Shirden holds an MBA from Michigan State University and a Bachelor of Arts in Journalism from Indiana University. She is an active member of both alumni groups and previously served on boards for the American Heart Association and several local non-profit organizations.

Worth Knowing:

1. Proud #dogmom to Arlo and Mabel
2. Bakes a wicked bourbon-caramel-oatmeal-chocolate chip cookie
3. Purchases and has used the same pink pens for a decade