Leadership Florida Presents Karen Moore with the 2026 Distinguished Member Award

Leadership Florida has named Karen Moore, Founder and CEO of The Moore Agency, as the recipient of its Distinguished Member Award, one of the organization’s highest honors. The award recognizes a Leadership Florida member whose activities outside of their professional responsibilities exemplify the organization’s highest standards and whose work has achieved statewide influence.

“I am honored to receive this recognition, which reflects the power of a shared commitment to expanding opportunity for every Floridian,” said Moore. “I’ve built my career around creating a company and culture where lifting others is simply how we operate.”

A Legacy of Statewide Impact 

Founded in 1992 as a one-woman agency, Moore has grown under Karen’s leadership into one of the nation’s largest independent communications agencies, earning recognition as a Top 200 Global Agency by PRovoke Media and honors as a Fastest Growing Company and Best Place to Work by Inc. as well as a Florida Trend Best Companies to Work For for 17 years running. Yet it is Karen’s leadership beyond the agency that distinguishes her.

Her civic and philanthropic contributions span higher education, veteran support, and poverty reduction, including:

• Higher education access: As a three-time Chair of the District Board of Trustees at Tallahassee State College (TSC), Karen champions scholarship and mentoring programs for first-generation and low-income students.
• Veteran support: The Richard and Karen Moore Veterans Success Center and Veterans Leadership Academy at TSC serves as a national model for veterans’ academic and career transitions.
• Poverty reduction: As Chair of the Florida Chamber Foundation, Karen helps drive statewide strategies to cut childhood poverty in half by 2030. She has personally contributed more than 50,000 meals to families in Tallahassee’s 32304 ZIP Code — the highest-poverty ZIP Code in Florida.
• Educational innovation: She is Founder and Board Chairman of Tallahassee Collegiate Academy, a tuition-free STEM charter high school that enables students to graduate with both a high school diploma and college degree pathways.
• Mentorship: Karen has personally mentored more than 130 young women, helping entrepreneurs, students, and rising professionals find their voice and pursue opportunity.

A Culture of Giving Back

The values that define Karen’s civic life are woven through the company she built. Moore’s commitment to community impact is institutionalized through Moore Impact, the agency’s community-giving and service initiative, which channels the time, talent, and resources of the Moore team into the communities where they live and work. That people-first, purpose-driven culture is reflected in the agency’s employee retention rate of 92% — well above industry norms — and stands as a testament to Karen’s belief that caring for people and caring for community are inseparable.

Karen’s leadership continues to earn national recognition. Most recently she was named National Trustee of the Year by the American Association of Community Colleges, recognizing her commitment and impact to Tallahassee State College.

A proud graduate of Leadership Florida’s Cornerstone Class 14, Moore was nominated by Monesia Brown in recognition of decades of service that has expanded economic and educational opportunity for Floridians across the state.

“Karen embodies everything the Distinguished Member Award was created to honor,” said Brown. “Whether opening doors for first-generation students, supporting veterans, or advancing bold solutions to reduce childhood poverty, Karen leads with compassion and delivers lasting, measurable impact. She exemplifies the highest ideals of Leadership Florida, bringing people together with integrity, purpose, and an unwavering commitment to strengthening communities across our state.”