Biography

Beth Calitri has spent more than 30 years as a highly specialized communications expert delivering award winning results at a host of U.S. and international pharmaceutical and biotech companies, as well as leading healthcare communications agencies. Her extensive experience as a global and domestic team leader and C-suite consultant, and her focus on driving businesses forward, have helped propel companies to achieve their goals and create committed, purpose-driven workplace cultures. Her commitment to cultural communications shines through the various initiatives she spearheads surrounding employee engagement, patient-focused communications, and corporate social responsibility at Ironwood Pharmaceuticals, where she currently heads up corporate communications and media relations.

Beth’s prior experiences living and working abroad have provided her with a global and inclusive mindset, which she translates into how she approaches corporate and brand communications, media relations, issues management, employee engagement and narrative building. She believes that all effective communications start with compelling storytelling and has made this the centerpiece of her efforts as Head of R&D Site Communications at Pfizer, Deputy Head of Global Media Relations at Novartis Switzerland and part of the Brand Communications team at AstraZeneca United Kingdom. While at Novartis, Beth was a founding team member of the vaccines division where she played a critical role in global communications and crisis management around the H1N1 virus. She was a member of the company’s Americas management committee and later, Deputy Head of Global Media Relations.

Beth graduated from the University of Rhode Island in 1990 with a B.A. in Communications and Public Relations, earned a degree in Spanish Studies and studied nutrition and chemistry at Hunter College in New York. She currently lives outside of Boston with her husband (Class of ’87) and two teenage children.