About Susan

Susan Donley is a senior communications strategist who leads organizations in clarifying their message, reaching the right audiences, and driving growth. With more than 25 years of experience, she brings fresh, adaptable, and entrepreneurial thinking—paired with a strong command of the fundamentals that deliver consistent results. Her work raises visibility, strengthens trust, shapes conversations, and drives revenue, partnerships, and philanthropic support.

Throughout her career, Susan has built and scaled national digital media platforms and communications initiatives. As founding Publisher and Managing Director of Next Avenue, she grew the audience from 400,000 to more than 45 million users, tripled revenue, and secured millions in philanthropic funding. She later founded Stria, building a network of 85,000 professionals and more than 175 strategic partnerships. In senior leadership roles at leading nonprofits and now at Ward Circle Strategies, she leads integrated work across content, media, and partnerships to expand reach and drive results.

She has worked with organizations including AARP, PBS, NPR, Bank of America, the Milken Institute, and the New York City government—translating complex issues into clear, compelling stories that connect with broad audiences and support growth.

Today, at Ward Circle Strategies, she advises national nonprofits, advocacy organizations, and institutions on integrated strategies that connect mission to message and position leaders and organizations for impact.

Career Highlights

• Ward Circle Strategies, Senior Advisor
• LeadingAge, Senior Vice President, Communications & Marketing
• Stria, Founder & CEO
• Next Avenue (PBS), Managing Director & Publisher
• Susan Donley Consulting, Founder
• Corporation for Supportive Housing, Director of Communications
• PBS, Associate Director of Brand Management and Promotion

3 Fun Facts

• Despite studying elementary education, Susan built much of her career in aging and longevity—developing deep expertise in how the field communicates about aging. She has led national efforts to shift public understanding, including serving on the National Center to Reframe Aging advisory board and leading initiatives to redefine how aging services are perceived.
• Susan didn’t set out to be an entrepreneur—but when she left a boutique agency and her clients followed, she leaned in. That moment led to years of running her own consulting practice, opportunities to launch first-of-their-kind digital content platforms, and executive roles standing up new teams and capabilities.
• Both of her parents were writers and editors, so she comes by her strong opinions on grammar honestly—and isn’t afraid to go to the mat over word choice when it matters. Words matter, and Susan knows how to use them. (She was also using the em dash long before AI made it a thing!)