Managing Principal, Advisory 83

Emerging among the brightest in the industry, Aerial Ellis is a gifted strategist and storyteller who nurtured an entrepreneurial spirit early in her career by launching her first public relations company at the age of 22.

Recognized globally for her work by PR News and The Huffington Post, Aerial has become a sought-after consultant and speaker for her ability to transform culture, improve diversity, enhance communication, navigate change, build community and drive innovation.

She is managing principal of Advisory 83, a communication consultancy committed to helping build sustainable and authentic organizations through strategic planning and curriculum development. Her clients include Asurion, Jackson National Life Insurance, AIG, Microsoft, National Urban League, US Army Corps of Engineers, among others addressing cultural competency, global communication, intergenerational culture and diversity/equity/inclusion.

She is also CEO of My Village Votes, a market research firm that partners with advocacy, civic and non-profit organizations to improve consumer and civic engagement catered to the insights of communities of color.

An active member of the Public Relations Society of America (PRSA), Aerial has served as a board member for the Nashville chapter, and as a member of the strategic planning, nominating, and diversity & inclusion committees on the national level. She has been appointed as senior counsel to the national board president and a co-chair for the Champions for PRSSA, a professional development initiative for students in public relations. She is also a fellow of the Plank Center for Leadership in Public Relations.

Aerial is co-founder of the Nashville Women of Color in Communications Network, a member of The Rotary Club of Nashville and Alpha Kappa Alpha Sorority, Incorporated, and a board member of Delta Dental of Tennessee – the first African-American woman and youngest person to be appointed to their corporate board.

Aerial is author of The Original Millennial, a book highlighting six defining lessons of leadership for millennials and accompanied by a professional development curriculum for the intergenerational workplace. She has taught courses in public relations, organizational communication/leadership, and cross-cultural communication as an assistant professor at Lipscomb University in Nashville, Tenn., and has guest lectured in Nepal, London and South Africa as an expert in intercultural communication and competence.

A native of Memphis, Aerial has a bachelor’s degree from Tennessee State University and a master’s degree from Middle Tennessee State University – both in communication/journalism, holds a certification in workforce diversity and inclusion from UCLA and the National Organization for Workforce Diversity, and holds a doctoral degree from the Global Executive Doctor of Education program at the University of Southern California.