In 2016, K2 & Co. set out to build the kind of firm there wasn’t enough of: one that moves faster, thinks strategically and ties communications directly to outcomes.
The firm’s roots come from politics, campaigns and public affairs, and that discipline still shapes how K2 approaches every client today. Whether the work involves a nonprofit gala, a trade association or a business navigating a high-pressure issue, the process starts the same way: define the goal, understand the audience, sharpen the message and execute.
Kristen Sheehan and Kirsten Kukowski lead K2 as a women-founded, full-service communications, public affairs, fundraising and events firm with a 15-person team working across Minnesota and the country.
“Our clients are not looking for someone to make noise,” Kukowski said. “They are looking for someone who can cut through it, find the message that matters and move it with purpose.”
Built from campaign discipline
Before co-founding K2, Kukowski worked in some of the highest-pressure communications environments in the country. Her experience includes the House of Representatives, a successful U.S. Senate campaign, five years as Press Secretary for a national political committee, communications director for a presidential campaign and communications leadership for the 2016 National Convention, and consulting for Nikki Haley’s presidential campaign.
Those roles gave her experience across media markets nationwide and a clear perspective: strong communications fundamentals do not change by geography. Whether the audience is in Washington, D.C., Los Angeles or the Twin Cities, direct, consistent and strategic communication wins.
“Campaigns teach you very quickly that timing, discipline and message control matter,” Kukowski said. “You do not have the luxury of overthinking. You read the room, sharpen the message and move.”
K2 applies that mindset across its work with nonprofits, trade associations, businesses and coalitions. For a nonprofit, that means turning a fundraising gala into a media and donor engagement opportunity. For an association, it means helping members show up at the Capitol with a clear message. For a business or coalition, it’s building trust around a complicated issue before misinformation gains traction.
Making missions actionable
At its core, K2 helps clients make their missions actionable.
That work can include earned media, public affairs strategy, donor engagement, association management, event production, crisis communications or stakeholder outreach. The purpose stays the same: help clients move from idea to execution.
“A mission statement sitting on a website does not move people,” Sheehan said. “Our job is to take the mission and turn it into something people can understand, support and act on.”
K2 treats communications, fundraising, events and public affairs as connected pieces of a larger strategy, not separate departments.
An event can be a fundraising opportunity, a media moment, a donor cultivation tool and a platform for storytelling. A public affairs campaign requires trusted voices, clear messaging, stakeholder relationships and public support. A communications plan requires timing, audience, credibility and follow-through.
Sheehan brings a fundraising and development lens to the firm’s events work, making sure galas, conferences and donor gatherings focus on outcomes, not just logistics. A polished event matters, but a successful event should raise money, strengthen relationships, and reinforce the mission.
A different kind of firm
Public relations, politics and public affairs remain male-driven fields. K2 builds its reputation by approaching the work differently.
The firm listens closely, adapts to client needs and does the detailed work that many firms overlook. That means growing association management, building a full-service events department, supporting fundraising strategy, developing advocacy campaigns and helping clients navigate complicated public-facing moments.
For K2, the work is not about creating noise. It is about cutting through it.
K2 grounds its work in strategy, relationships, timing, trust and execution. Those values matter even more in a communications environment defined by fragmented media, declining trust, fast-moving platforms and selective audiences.
Organizations can no longer separate mission from message or vision from execution. The message delivered to reporters supports what donors hear at an event, what lawmakers hear at the Capitol and what stakeholders see online.
Communications cannot sit off to the side. It has to run through the work.
Built for what comes next
As K2 enters its second decade, the firm continues growing client needs. Its team includes communications strategists, public affairs professionals, fundraisers, event planners, researchers and campaign operatives with experience across Minnesota and the country.
From securing press for a gala supporting local law enforcement to helping a trade association increase its advocacy impact, K2’s work remains grounded in the same principle that launched the firm 10 years ago: good communications should move something forward.
“Ten years in, we are still doing this differently because our clients need more than attention,” Sheehan said. “They need people to understand the work, believe in it and do something because of it.”
K2 & Co. is a women-founded, full-service communications, public affairs, fundraising and events firm serving nonprofits, associations, businesses, campaigns and public-facing organizations across Minnesota and the country. Learn more at k2andcompany.com.
Big goals need more than good intentions. K2 & Co. helps nonprofits, associations, businesses and public-facing organizations clarify the message, reach the right audiences and execute when it matters most. If your team is ready to move from planning to action, connect with us at k2andcompany.com.
K2 & Co. is built for organizations that need more than attention. The women-founded firm brings communications, public affairs, fundraising and events together to help clients sharpen their message, build trust and move work forward across Minnesota and the country. Learn more at k2andcompany.com.
This article originally appeared in the Minneapolis Saint Paul Business Journal.
