Diana Marszalek 17 Aug 2021 // 7:01PM GMT
RESTON, VA — Catherine Blades has joined SAIC as senior VP of marketing and communications roughly eight months after leaving Aflac.
Blades joined SAIC, formally called Science Applications International Corporation, earlier this month. The Reston, Virginia-based company provides government services and information technology support.
Blades did not respond to request for comment.
Blades held several senior comms roles after joining Aflac in 2014 as corporate communications senior VP. She was upped to chief brand and communications officer in October 2017 as part of Aflac’s larger restructuring of its marketing and communications departments.
In March of 2019, Blades added ESG to her remit, putting her in charge of Aflac’s corporate affairs division and ESG oversight, but lost marketing responsibilities. That change also was part of restructuring that saw marketing oversight shift to the company's US business division.
When she left Aflac in January, Blades told PRovoke Media that it was “time to move on to the next chapter.”
While at Aflac, Blades was a driving force behind the creation of My Special Aflac Duck, a high-profile Sabre award winning campaign. The Aflac Duck is an interactive robotic toy has helped thousands of children battling cancer by providing emotional support and encouraging them to communicate.