Our Team
President
Mark Malloy
Mark Malloy is President and owner of Next Step Communications. He joined the agency as a partner in 2021 and assumed full ownership in 2025.
Mark has spent his entire career in the plastics industry. He was part of the ownership group that launched Plastics Machinery Magazine and previously held sales and marketing positions with Progressive Components. He is based in the northern suburbs of Chicago.
Chief Content Officer
Karen Hanna
Karen is a veteran B2B journalist and content creator with more than two decades of editorial experience. Most recently, she spent more than 11 years as a senior staff writer for Plastics Machinery Magazine (PMM), covering manufacturing, industrial technology, and plastics processing.
Karen previously worked with Mark at PMM and is based in the Akron, Ohio, area.
Founder / Retired
Greg Hannoosh
Greg has retired in April 2025 with nearly four decades of experience in advertising and marketing. Prior to founding Next Step Communications Inc. in 1996, he served as director of marketing communications for Dynisco Inc. and KONA Corporation. He has been a member of the Plastics Pioneers Association (inducted 2016) and the Society of Plastics Engineers.
About Next Step Communications, Inc.
Founded in 1996, Next Step Communications, Inc. is a B2B public relations and marketing communications firm with a focus on the plastics, tooling and converting industries. We take a hands-on, personalized approach that allows us to best tell your company’s story.
“Wittmann USA has had a close relationship with Next Step Communications for over 15 years. Their PR work has been invaluable and has helped Wittmann USA gain tremendous exposure in the plastics industry press.”
