by Joe Wilhelm Jr.
Staff Write
One directed a successful gubernatorial campaign and the other spearheaded the public campaign to support the hometown team, and both are joining a prominent Florida public affairs firm.
Smith & Ballard announced Tuesday that Susie Wiles and former Jacksonville Jaguar Tony Boselli have been chosen to lead its new Ponte Vedra office.
Both Wiles and Smith & Ballard Managing Partner Brian Ballard worked on the successful Rick Scott campaign during the gubernatorial election and the two talked about working together after the election.
“I came to respect (Ballard) as a professional and I liked him personally, and we started chatting about what it would be like to work together,” said Wiles.
“He expressed an interest in a Jacksonville office. Tony came up to Tallahassee for some meetings and we decided it would be a pretty good fit for everybody,” she said.
The firm is headquartered in Tallahassee and has an office in West Palm Beach. Wiles saw the Jacksonville office as a logical step in the progression of the firm.
“It was a combination of us being here and they are at the size and scope where they were ready to expand a little bit,” said Wiles. “I think the combination of those two things made Jacksonville attractive.”
Wiles’ government relations experience includes serving as chief of staff for former Mayor John Delaney and communications chief for Mayor John Peyton and a transition team member for former Florida Gov. Charlie Crist. She also has been working on Scott’s transition team as liaison to the Legislature.
Wiles will also maintain an office in the firm’s Tallahassee headquarters and will be actively involved in providing strategic counsel for the firm’s clients.
Boselli may not have the same political background or experience, but he brings a different skill set to the table according to Wiles.
“He is smart, driven. He is a very good strategic thinker,” said Wiles. “He’s been in Jacksonville long enough to have exposure to corporate Jacksonville and, frankly, the government process working with the City to partner on the Boselli Center and being a committee chairman on the Jacksonville Journey. He is closer to government than people might think.”
Both Wiles and Boselli said they know their strengths, and both recognize those strengths help them complement each other.
“I’m not a professional lobbyist,” said Boselli. “What I’ve done and what I enjoy doing is working with clients in looking for opportunities to grow and overcome obstacles from a business standpoint.”
Boselli also said he prides himself on time management, and he will continue to need that skill as he adds another responsibility to a full plate.
The two have worked together before as partners in the Jacksonville office for IF Marketing and Advertising. They also had worked together in the Jacksonville Journey efforts.
Boselli doesn’t plan to ease up on his commitment to Team Teal, the effort to sell season tickets to avoid blackouts the past season for the Jacksonville Jaguars.
He attended rallies from Fernandina to Palatka before the 2010 season, contributing to a 44 percent increase in ticket sales.
“I am still commissioner of Team Teal and in year two we’ll be smarter, more efficient,” said Boselli.
“We kind of took it out of the box last year and we made a few mistakes, but we will get better in the second year. We’ve got a great team of people, great team captains,” he said.
“Team Teal is just as important to me this year as it was last year, even though the national media might be leaving us alone,” he said.
Boselli said he wants to continue to be a part of the national media as a football analyst for Westwood One radio.
“My contract is up this year, so we’ll see how it goes,” he said. “I liked it, and I hope to continue with Westwood One.”
Boselli and Wiles are a part of a firm founded in 1998 that specializes in all aspects of governmental affairs and was founded by leaders in public service.
Partner Jim Smith previously served as Florida secretary of state and attorney general, while Ballard served as the chief of staff for former Florida Gov. Bob Martinez.
“To be able to add two individuals with this level of talent, expertise and knowledge of the Jacksonville and greater Florida landscape is a bold step forward for our firm,” said Ballard in a news release.
“Susie and Tony will be decisive ambassadors for our firm as they drive the upward development of the Jacksonville office. We also welcome Susie’s added public affairs counsel on client issues from around the state and in the capital city,” he said.
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