About The Rowland Agency
The Rowland Agency is a boutique PR agency for startups with innovative and disruptive technologies
Leveraging a rich experience in building brands and business value, we develop and execute strategic communications programs based on what success looks like in the short- and long-term and deliver unparalleled results.
Amber Rowland, Founder
Named one of the best PR people in the tech industry*, Amber, a San Francisco native, is passionate about promoting the most promising technologies and brings more than 20 years of experience to her clients.
Amber founded The Rowland Agency in 2009 where she has helped launch and brand some of the hottest B2B startups, like HashiCorp (#4 on Forbes Cloud 100 in five years and a $5 billion valuation -> 4th biggest US business software IPO of 2021 and acquired by IBM for $6.4 billion in 2025) and Gimlet Labs (a $3 billion valuation less than a year after launching). She has also led strategic programs at later-stage startups, like Deepgram and Illumio, and Google Cloud.
Before The Rowland Agency, Amber led global communications at VMware during the company’s hyper-growth phase, helping grow annual revenues from less than $30 million to $2 billion in eight years. As the only in-house communications counsel during her first five years, she worked closely with the leadership team to establish a distinct, powerful company brand and to create the virtualization category through sustained strategic influencer, media and analyst programs. She handled communications for VMware’s IPO, the largest tech IPO of 2007, and then led CEO communications for Diane Greene.
Prior to VMware, Amber held leadership positions at Applied Communications (now Archetype) on the Oracle and SeeBeyond (acquired by Sun, now Oracle) accounts, BroadVision, Storm Technology and Unison Software (acquired by IBM Tivoli) where she built her solid track record of delivering results including high profile placements in key business and technology media outlets.
Amber earned a Bachelor of Science in Commerce from Santa Clara University, served on the Ulumau Hawaiʻi Island Leadership Series Executive Board and has volunteered for Hui Kuapa, a Friends of the Future program. She has also put on free community events for kids like the Bodhi Tree Keiki Fest and Halloween Bash that each had more than 1000 attendees.
*Business Insider's the 50 Best Public Relations People in the Tech Industry and Hot Topics' the 100 Most Influential Tech Agency PR Executives Globally lists