Ben Trounson

I help Fortune 500 organizations build unshakeable stakeholder trust through strategic communications that turn complexity into clarity. As a VP of Global Corporate Communications with 20+ years of experience, I specialize in guiding companies through the reputation opportunities and challenges that come with transformation, crisis, and growth.

My career spans leadership roles at technology, energy, and pharmaceutical giants including Tata Consultancy Services, National Grid, Verizon, and Bristol Myers Squibb. At TCS, I helped transform the company's reputation from a lesser-known IT services provider into a globally recognized digital transformation partner for Fortune 500 clients, contributing to brand value growth from $5B to $14B over my seven-year tenure. This transformation required rebuilding narratives, executive
positioning, and stakeholder relationships across multiple markets.

I've built and led global communications teams ranging from 20 to 50+ members across North America, EMEA, APAC, and LATAM regions. My approach focuses on three core elements: authentic narrative development that aligns with business strategy, internal capability building that empowers teams to execute consistently, and external relationship management that builds lasting credibility with key stakeholders including media, investors, regulators, and employees.

Whether navigating CEO transitions, major acquisitions, regulatory scrutiny, or market repositioning, I ensure corporate communications delivers measurable impact on reputation and business outcomes.

Vice President of Communications, Verizon Business

I’m soon heading west for my next career move. But first, I had to celebrate the first-ever Long Island #commsjobs event.

Great to meet a rich mix of local comms pros, talk shop, offer support, and share some fun stories. Thank you, Chrissy Jones, for hosting, and for those in attendance, such as Sian Suthers (welcome to the East Coast), Steve Lavner, and Lisa Feldman Josephy.

Agree, we'll find a sweet spot for the next event, showcasing the beauty of LI in the summer, right Daniel Méndez Aróstica, MBA?

But don't get the locals started on whether we say living "IN" or living "ON" Long Island. The hot debate continues... 🙂

VP, Global Corporate Communications | Reputation & Stakeholder Trust Builder | 20+ Years Transforming Fortune 500 Narratives | Former Verizon, National Grid, TCS | $5B-$14B Brand Value Growth

I’m enjoying the sun and sights of Phoenix today. 

Love the relaxed, yet vibrant city feel during a five-mile walk. 

And I’m thinking of my friends and family facing the big storm in the Northeast. Getting their workouts in with their shovels!

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Polish isn’t the tell with AI slop. Lack of substance is

Charlie Guo has a great piece on spotting AI-generated content and its impact on writers' confidence.  

The giveaway is surface-level polish with nothing underneath.

The answer isn’t trying to “out-write” AI patterns or second-guess yourself. 

It’s writing from real experience, with specific knowledge or having an actual POV or counterpoint. That’s still the hardest thing to fake.

Charlie's Substack is at Artificial Ignorance.

Open article: The Field Guide to AI Slop by ignorance.ai

Search traffic is no longer a given.

Publishers now expect referrals from search engines to almost halve by 2028/29, according to Reuters Institute for the Study of Journalism Media & Tech Trends report.

A few signals worth paying attention to:
- AI search and summaries are reducing clicks, often before content is even seen.
- Distribution is driving discovery, while owned channels are becoming trust engines.
- Journalists (and communicators) are being asked to think like creators.
- Credibility, originality (among the AI slop) and "human" connection are becoming the real differentiators.

What’s interesting is how this reinforces the importance of earned and owned media, which many of you opined on in 2025.   

You can see this shift playing out on platforms. YouTube hosting the Oscars. Netflix signing The Rest Is Football podcast (one of my favorites) for the 2026 World Cup.

I would love to hear from other comms and brand leaders. How are you adjusting to this earned attention reset? 

#branddiscovery #communications #earnedattention

I empower leaders with AI Workshops & B2B digital strategy | LinkedIn Top Voice | Public Speaker | Board Director | Podcaster🎙️

AI won’t replace communicators, but communicators who use AI will define the future.

The communications industry is evolving faster than most teams are prepared for. Those who integrate AI today, ethically, strategically, and confidently, will lead tomorrow’s conversations.

𝗧𝗵𝗮𝘁’𝘀 𝘄𝗵𝗲𝗿𝗲 𝗜 𝗰𝗼𝗺𝗲 𝗶𝗻.

I help PR and communications leaders future-proof their teams with practical, hands-on AI strategy. Through custom workshops, audits, and advisory programs, I bridge the gap between curiosity and capability, showing teams how to integrate AI into real-world workflows without losing the human voice that makes communications powerful.

I’ve trained and advised leaders across a variety of organizations like Ragan, MacMillan Publishing, Penguin Random House, PPG, etc., helping them build AI readiness, sharpen strategy, and unlock new efficiencies in content, reputation, and storytelling.

If your team wants to:
✅ Use AI responsibly, with clear governance and guardrails
✅ Build workflow efficiencies that actually stick
✅ Strengthen credibility in an AI-driven media landscape

Then 𝗹𝗲𝘁’𝘀 𝘁𝗮𝗹𝗸. Visit chrisgee.me
or send me a message here on LinkedIn.

Don't wait to future-proof your team.

Chris Gee

If you’re attending 𝗔𝗜 𝗛𝗼𝗿𝗶𝘇𝗼𝗻𝘀 𝗖𝗼𝗻𝗳𝗲𝗿𝗲𝗻𝗰𝗲 in Fort Lauderdale (Feb. 2–4), I’m excited to share what I’ll be leading there.

My session is called “𝗔𝗜 𝗔𝗴𝗲𝗻𝘁 𝗶𝗻 𝗮 𝗙𝗹𝗮𝘀𝗵: 𝗕𝘂𝗶𝗹𝗱 𝗮 𝗗𝗿𝗮𝗴-𝗮𝗻𝗱-𝗗𝗿𝗼𝗽 𝗔𝗴𝗲𝗻𝘁 𝗪𝗼𝗿𝗸𝗳𝗹𝗼𝘄 𝗟𝗶𝘃𝗲.”

And it’s exactly what it sounds like.

Instead of talking about AI agents, we’ll build one together in real time.

The goal isn’t to show something flashy or theoretical. It’s to demystify how agentic workflows actually work and where they’re useful for communications teams right now.

In the session, we’ll cover:

→ What makes an AI agent different from automation
→ Where agents actually add value for comms, and where they don’t
→ How to design a simple, targeted agent workflow without writing code
→ Why “don’t boil the ocean” is the most important rule in agent adoption
→ How to think about risk, oversight, and human-in-the-loop design from day one

This is for comms leaders who are past curiosity but not ready for overengineering.

People who want to understand what’s possible, what’s practical, and what’s premature.

If you’re responsible for AI adoption, workflow design, or future-proofing your team, this will be a hands-on session you can actually take something back from.

Details and registration here: https://lnkd.in/e5ffT5ti

If you’re going to be there, let me know. I’d love to connect in Fort Lauderdale.

Helping PR & Comms leaders future-proof with AI strategy | Speaker + Trainer | Keynotes + Workshops | Ragan Advisor

AI video tools are getting so good that it’s tempting to cut humans out of the loop altogether.

Avatars can speak on command. Scripts write themselves. Video can be generated, localized, and scaled in minutes. For teams under pressure to produce more content, faster, the pull toward fully synthetic video is real.

But the data tells a more complicated story.

According to Animoto’s 2026 State of Video report, audiences are increasingly on the lookout for AI-generated video. Many say they can spot it. More importantly, AI-heavy video can negatively impact trust when it feels inauthentic. 𝗜𝗻 𝗳𝗮𝗰𝘁, 𝟲𝟴% 𝗼𝗳 𝘃𝗶𝗲𝘄𝗲𝗿𝘀 𝘀𝗮𝘆 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝗽𝗿𝗲𝘀𝗲𝗻𝗰𝗲 𝗼𝗳 𝗿𝗲𝗮𝗹 𝗵𝘂𝗺𝗮𝗻𝘀 𝗶𝘀 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝗻𝘂𝗺𝗯𝗲𝗿 𝗼𝗻𝗲 𝗳𝗮𝗰𝘁𝗼𝗿 𝗶𝗻 𝗺𝗮𝗸𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝘃𝗶𝗱𝗲𝗼 𝗳𝗲𝗲𝗹 𝗮𝘂𝘁𝗵𝗲𝗻𝘁𝗶𝗰. Efficiency matters, but credibility still matters more.

We can see this tension play out in the real world. Take Coca-Cola’s “Holidays Are Coming” campaign. The spots continue to lean heavily on nostalgia, emotion, and human connection, even as the production process itself is 100% devoid of people, which led to audiences saying it felt "cold." 

The magic isn’t that AI replaces people. The magic is that technology supports a story that still feels deeply human.

That’s the lesson for 2026.

The future of video is not 100% human or 100% synthetic. It’s hybrid. AI should handle the scale, speed, and craftsmanship behind the scenes. Humans should remain front and center where trust, emotion, and connection are the goal.

When we get that balance right, video doesn’t just perform better. It feels right.

How are you working AI technology into your video content? Taking a balanced approach? Let me know in the comments! 👇🏽

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The Battle

Ben Trounson

Chris Gee

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Engagements

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Performance Score.css-goub6s{font-size:var(--chakra-fontSizes-md);font-weight:500;color:var(--chakra-colors-gray-600);display:block;margin-top:var(--chakra-space-1);}Ben Trounson's LinkedIn Performance

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