Erika Pulley-Hayes

President & CEO
WMFE/WMFV, Orlando

Erika Pulley-Hayes joined WMFE|WMFV in January 2020 as president and CEO after a long tenure at the Corporation for Public Broadcasting (CPB) where she served as radio vice president.  In this capacity, she provided strategic leadership to the public radio system by developing initiatives that drive innovation and advance public media service. She has worked to enhance local service and sustainability by identifying new business opportunities and operating models that engage audiences across platforms and increase organizational capacity. She was instrumental in the early development of journalism collaborations among public media organizations in local regions.  She was also responsible for developing the policies that govern CPB’s Community Service Grant program which, as public media’s largest funding source, supports over 400 organizations operating public radio stations nationwide.  

Erika began her career at a Fortune 500 pharmaceutical company, where she worked under the general counsel and corporate secretary.  In this role, she worked closely with the board of directors, negotiated corporate agreements for commercial transactions, and ensured political and regulatory compliance. Erika later managed legal operations of a small clinical research organization overseeing risk management, corporate housekeeping and commercial contracts generating approximately $40 million annually.

Erika serves on the board of NPR, Eastern Region Public Media and Florida Public Media.  She is also a director of 826 National, a nonprofit organization dedicated to helping students improve their expository and creative writing skills in nine cities across the country.   In addition, Erika is a member of the Alliance of Women in Media.  Erika holds an MBA and an MS in Nonprofit Management from the University of Maryland University College.