Mike Grady has been involved in Illinois government and campaigns for over 25 years. He began his professional career as a policy analyst for then-Treasurer Patrick Quinn in 1993 before joining the Issues Development staff of Speaker of the House Michael J. Madigan. In this role he learned both the nuts-and-bolts of the legislative process and managed some of the highest profile legislative races in Illinois during the late 1990’s.
In 1999 he joined the new administration of Secretary of State Jesse White as his first Chief Liaison to the Illinois House of Representatives. In that role he managed passage of a wide variety of laws impacting vehicle and driver safety, business regulation, public libraries, and financial securities. Most notably, he drafted and guided to passage the first law in Illinois to levy tougher penalties on DUI offenders that drive under the influence at twice the legal limit.
In 2006 he moved outside the halls of government service to become the Director of Public Policy and Government Relations for the American Cancer Society in Illinois. It was in this role that he managed the statewide public policy campaign to pass the Smoke Free Illinois Act — the strongest clean indoor air law in the nation. His groundbreaking campaign strategy earned him national recognition from the Society as their Government Relations Professional of the Year in 2007.
In 2010, he moved into private practice forming his own firm, MG Consulting, independently serving clients in the areas of public health, health care, workers compensation reform, service to the disabled, and clean energy; as well as training many organizations on how to leverage grassroots strategies to enhance advocacy efforts. In 2015, he merged his business with the former Kolkmeier Consulting firm to create Strategic Advocacy Group.
In 2018, Strategic Advocacy Group merged with the website, social media and graphic design firm BH Design to further expand the firms offerings to clients looking to pursue more robust and fully formed public policy advocacy strategies.
Grady was born in Mattoon, Illinois; received his B.A. from Eastern Illinois University in 1992, and has lived in the Springfield area for 25 years. He lives with his wife, Alyson, and their three children, Justin, Aidan, & Clare.