Our People

Rick Ridder
Joannie Braden
Faye Diamond
Craig Hughes
Tyler Chafee
Matt Chandler

Rick Ridder
President and Co-Founder
Rick possesses extensive experience from both the campaign trail and the consultant’s chair. As the National Campaign Manager for Dean for America in early 2003, he oversaw the campaign as it rose from an asterisk in the polls to a legitimate contender. He has served as a senior consultant for three presidential campaigns (including both Clinton/Gore campaigns) and as the National Field Director for two other presidential bids. Rick has consulted for numerous U.S. Congressional, gubernatorial, and state and local initiative campaigns. Internationally, his work in 17 countries includes advising the successful campaigns of four heads of state. He is a past president of the International Association of Political Consultants and a winner of the “Pollie Award‿ as International Consultant of the Year. Recently Rick was recognized with the “Award of Achievement‿ from the Gleitsman Foundation, “in recognition of commitment and leadership initiating social change.‿

Prior to political consulting, Rick was an independent radio and television producer whose programming aired on major networks. He holds an M.S. in Broadcasting from Boston University and a B.S. from Middlebury College.

Joannie Braden
Managing Partner and Co-Founder
With over 20 years of campaign and business experience, Joannie has been involved in every aspect of the firm’s development and has expertise in a variety of areas, including voter contact, survey research, campaign strategy, and budgeting. She has been involved in campaigns and campaign training programs in Mexico, the United Kingdom, Australia, Spain, and Sweden. As managing partner, Joannie oversees the firm’s daily operations and marketing efforts.

Prior to founding RBI, Joannie taught in Washington, D.C. and Quito, Ecuador. She has a working knowledge of Spanish and holds a B.A. from Bennington College.

Faye Diamond
Senior Associate
As a consultant, Faye blends her legal, organizational and political skills, working with congressional and legislative candidates, and membership and non-profit associations. After graduating from college, she began her professional career in the Washington, D.C. offices of the National Women’s Political Caucus. Upon her return to Colorado, Faye went to work for Governor Dick Lamm, first on his 1982 re-election campaign and then on his legislative staff. Faye then managed two state legislative races and thereafter worked on various federal, local and referenda campaigns. As UniServ Director for the Colorado Education Association, she served as a teacher advocate, assisting local associations in collaborative bargaining, membership recruitment and political activities.

Faye has been active in Democratic Party politics, serving as Finance Director for the House Democratic Majority Fund and as Executive Director for the Colorado Democratic Party. She is the Secretary of the International Association of Political Consultants.
Faye holds a Juris Doctor from the University Of Denver College Of Law.

Craig Hughes
Director of Research
Craig oversees all quantitative and qualitative research for the firm. Since he joined the firm in April of 2000, Craig has supervised several hundred polls and focus groups for RBI’s political, non-profit and corporate clients. Craig has also been involved in the design and management of various issue and candidate campaigns throughout the United States.

Craig came to RBI after working as Eastern Political Director in the Clinton White House from 1998-2000. In that position, he supervised political activities for the President, First Lady, Vice President, and Mrs. Gore in twelve Eastern states. Craig was one of the earliest staff members hired for the Clinton for President Campaign in 1991, and subsequently worked for both Clinton/Gore campaigns as well as the Democratic National Committee. Through these and other positions, Craig has worked on or consulted for campaigns in over twenty states in every section of the country.

Craig was named a “Rising Star in Politics‿ by Campaigns and Elections magazine in 2000 and has been a featured speaker at political trainings, retreats and clinics, including seminars in Kenya, Uganda, and Brazil. He has also been an Adjunct Professor of Political Science at Metro State University in Denver.

Tyler Chafee
Senior Associate

Tyler Chafee brings more than a decade of experience in progressive politics to RBI Strategies. Recently back from a leave of absence to serve as the Colorado State Director for the Hillary Clinton for President Campaign, Tyler is an experienced campaign manager. Before joining RBI he served as a political advisor to Rutt Bridges and the Bighorn Center for Public Policy. Before that he spent several years working the labor movement as National Political Analyst for the Service Employees International Union (SEIU), and then the Political Director for the Colorado AFL-CIO. Tyler’s campaign management experience ranges from media and grassroots education funds to candidate campaigns. He worked in Diana DeGette’s 1996 race for Congress, and Dottie Lamm’s 1998 race for U.S. Senate. He also helped launch Bill Bradley’s bid for the Democratic presidential nomination in 1999, serving in the political department until Bradley’s concession in March of 2000.

Tyler also interned with the Colorado ACLU in 1995 and the Civil Rights Division of the U.S. Department of Justice in Washington DC in 1997. This prompted him to take on an undergraduate honors thesis exploring the issue of environmental justice through a case study of the Globeville community in Denver, and their efforts against the ASARCO Corporation. He graduated with Honors from the University of Denver and is pursuing a J.D. part time at the University of Denver.

Matt Chandler
Associate
A graduate of Colorado College, Matt Chandler joined RBI in May of 2006.

Chandler offers our clients experience as a freelance news and travel journalist, news photographer, and assistant account executive at a Colorado public relations firm. Chandler graduated from Colorado College with a BA in English Literature, writing his thesis seminar paper on Western revisionist literature. At RBI, Chandler focuses on political and progressive media relations, as well as crafting media strategy. He has done media relations work for corporations, campaigns, online new media, as well as non-profits. Chandler has worked with organizations such as Colorado Media Matters, the Olympic Dream for Darfur campaign, Colorado Confidential.com, and the Colorado AFL-CIO. He is also a member of the Board of Directors of the Colorado Coalition for Genocide Awareness and Action.

His experience abroad includes study in New Zealand, attendance at a foreign correspondent’s training course in Prague, Czech Republic, extensive travel in Latin America, Europe, the South Pacific, and helping coordinate on-site activities for the International Association of Political Consultants at the 2006 Barcelona Conference.