Mike Fernandez

Vice President of Public Affairs
State Farm Insurance Companies

Mike Fernandez is vice president of public affairs at State Farm, an insurance and financial services company that is the largest auto and home insurer in the U.S.

In a public relations and marketing career that spans more than 25 years,  Fernandez has had responsibility for many functions including corporate marketing, investor relations, government relations, media relations, employee communications, industry affairs, community relations, sponsorships and creative services.  Prior to joining State Farm, he served as senior vice president and chief communications officer for ConAgra Foods, senior vice president of public affairs at CIGNA, and vice president of public relations at US WEST.  Fernandez worked nine years as a public relations and marketing executive at Eastman Kodak Company.  Prior to his corporate career, he worked in the world of political marketing and served seven years as press secretary to U.S. Senator Ernest F. "Fritz" Hollings.

Recognized as a “PR All Star” by Inside PR in 1999, Fernandez and his teams have earned top honors from the Public Relations Society of America (PRSA), the International Association of Business Communicators (IABC) and the American Marketing Association among others. He currently serves on the board of the Institute for Public Relations, is a member of the Arthur W. Page Society and a participant in the Public Relations Seminar.

His community involvement through the years has included activities associated with education, economic development, and the Latino community, including service on the boards of the National School Boards Foundation, Volunteers of America, New York Commission on Vocational Education, Statewide Youth Advocacy of New York, Pennsylvania Economy League, Ibero-American Action League and the corporate advisory board of the National Council of La Raza.  He also was elected to the school board and city council of Rochester, New York

Fernandez earned a B.A. in government and M.S. in accounting from Georgetown University. He is the father of three daughters and a son, and currently lives with his wife, Pat, in Champaign, IL.