WEST PALM BEACH, FL—Four veteran corporate communications professionals have launched a new integrated communications firm based in Florida and serving a regional, national and international clientele—with a focus on serving enterprises “that seek to make a difference by improving the quality of life for others, as profit-making or as non-profit ventures, mature or early stage, anywhere in the world.”

The founders of Next Horizon Communications include Morrie Goodman, a veteran of several high-profile public sector communications roles; Bob Nagro, a sales and marketing expert who has been part of the leadership at five start-up companies; Doug Poretz, who has held senior roles with several Washington, DC, public relations firms; and Marty Rogol, who previously led Florida-based Marketing Concepts.

The firm will work across distribution channels including traditional media, publicity, new media, paid advertising, interactive and special events among other avenues to get clients’ messages to the appropriate audiences. It has already started to provide communications counsel to the Life Sciences & Technology South Florida HUB, a non-profit membership organization, and has created the South Florida Life Sciences Information Clearinghouse, an information resource for all those interested in the life sciences community in the region.

Goodman previously served clients in aviation and aerospace firms, the Department of Homeland Security, and other federal and state agencies. He has been NASA's assistant administrator for public affairs, director of communications at the Federal Emergency Management Agency, and press secretary at the U.S. Department of Commerce, as well as a reporter, producer and news director for South Florida TV stations and CNN.

Nagro has been part of the leadership at five start-up companies, two in the life sciences, as COO or vice president of sales and marketing, and has helped raise almost $60 million in venture funding. Earlier, he worked at IBM, where in addition to other roles he led IBM’s operations in northern Latin America and IBM's marketing to the financial services industry in Asia/Pacific and in Europe.

Poretz was founder and principal at four public relations firms, including Qorvis, and has led communications efforts for IPOs, product launches, acquisitions and divestitures, Chapter 11 filings, repositioning campaigns, and internal communications efforts.

Rogol previously founded Marketing Concepts, Inc., also based in West Palm Beach, FL, which provided integrated marketing campaigns, brand building, cause-related marketing programs, strategic communications planning, crisis communications, public affairs and events management. He also was the founding executive director of USA for Africa, which produced the international anthem “We Are the World.”