Mike Nikolich
President and CEO
Mike
founded Tech Image® in 1993 and offers 28 years
of high-tech public relations agency experience, representing
such companies as Ameritech, Arrow ECS, CoolSavings,
GlobalSpec, Initiate Systems, MapQuest, NEC, Optibase,
PCLive, RedPrairie, Rockwell Electronic Commerce and
Truevision. Prior to Tech Image, Mike served as Senior
Vice President at Chicago public relations firm Selz/Seabolt
Communications.
What is Your Favorite Success Story?
For many years, Tech Image represented the American Radio Relay League
(ARRL), the world's largest association of amateur radio
operators. Since I am a ham radio operator myself, I
was very excited about this account. When we began working
for the ARRL, it had a program in place called the Shuttle
Amateur Radio Experiment (SAREX), where astronauts aboard
the shuttle would talk to students via ham radio. We
thought this program had tremendous PR potential; the
client didn't. I was willing to risk the account to
prove a point. We enlisted the help of a former NBC-TV
host (and amateur radio operator) named Roy Neal and
promoted him as a spokesperson for the event. Our teaser
mailing consisted of a 50-cent space shuttle toy and
an index card headlined, "Want to talk to someone in
outer space?" "Good Morning America ," "CBS This Morning,"
and "NBC Overnight" all featured major stories on the
SAREX program as a result of our work, but the highlight
had to be a 15-minute segment on David Letterman. I
still play that tape for prospective clients.
What Are Your Hobbies and Interests?
My wife and two daughters are my No. 1 interest, but I dabble in many
hobbies. I love music of all styles - pop, world beat,
classical, hard rock and jazz. Other passions include
astronomy, biking, golf, biking, investing, racquetball,
reading and watching movies at my home theater. My favorite
hobbies, however, are shortwave radio listening and
amateur radio. Radio communications has had a big impact
on what I do professionally. My kids, of course, will
have nothing to do with radio.
What is the Title of the Last Good Book You Read?
"The Worst Journey
in the World" by Apsley Cherry Garrard and "The Kite
Runner" by Khaled Hosseini.
Who are Your Favorite Recording Artists?
I'm currently listening to And You Will Know Us By the Trail of Dead,
Dears, Doves, Golden Earring, Prefab Sprout, Spoon,
Style Council, David Sylvian, Ali Farka Toure, and Chris
Whitley.
Why Are You a Good Fit at Tech Image?
I like to lead by example. PR is a passion for me and
nothing gives me a bigger kick than seeing a client
on the front page of The Wall Street Journal .
I try to inspire my employees to do their best work
of their careers. We don't have room for slackers at
Tech Image. All of us work hard and play hard. That's
why we do crazy things like " Champagne Fridays"
to celebrate successes and try to beat each other's
brains out in racquetball, golf and bowling. Life's
too short. If you are not having fun at work, what's
the point in going to work?
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