June 16, 2026
June 16, 2026
Mission North’s new Chief Corporate Affairs Officer Danny Maiello and I have both been in this business for decades, long enough to agree that more has changed in the last three years than in the thirty before them.
He started as a producer at CNN in the 1990s and spent nearly three decades in Washington, working across journalism, politics, and the agency world, including Burson-Marsteller, Fleishman-Hillard and Highwire, before moving to the West Coast six years ago. He's also taught corporate communications at Georgetown.
We recently sat down to discuss the rise of the chief communicator, why AI is a human story, and the one piece of advice he'd put in an open letter to every CEO. This is an edited version of that conversation.
A Wall Street Journal piece we were both reading recently got at something you and I have believed for years: that comms has finally hit critical mass as a C-suite discipline. What's the must-have skill for top communicators?
We are strategic counselors to our clients. We are way more than a press release operation, and that's been evident for decades. The industry at large just hadn't looked at us that way. The most important element for any successful communicator is someone who's able to read the situation and come in with trusted counsel.
The geopolitical situation has created a more reactionary, issues-driven environment for all businesses. So having that trusted counselor who's able to read the room and read the news cycle, and identify where the vulnerabilities are and where the opportunities are for executives and brands, is more important than ever. We've been preparing for this for years.
Having that trusted counselor who's able to read the room and read the news cycle, and identify where the vulnerabilities are and where the opportunities are for executives and brands, is more important than ever.
You've said nothing builds trust like getting a client through a crisis. Why?
The pandemic was a forcing function. It forced us all together in the room, almost in a war room together, figuring it out. That created that much more connectivity between the comms side and the business side. Nothing creates more stickiness, more connectivity, more of that foxhole-like connection than counseling a C-suite through a crisis or a difficult moment. What is revealed is how much you understand the brand, and how much dedication you have to getting that executive to the other side of the issue. It can be messy, it can be really painful, emotions run high. Trust and credibility are tested throughout that process, and it's really not for the faint of heart. We have earned our seat at the table as communicators and as counselors through those exercises.
You spent almost three decades in DC and now you’re in Silicon Valley. How is reputation earned differently on each coast?
It is a 180. We live and breathe tech here, and we live and breathe public affairs in DC. DC's a bit of a one-horse town in that it is laser-focused on what's happening at 1600 Pennsylvania Avenue. Everything is focused on policy and public affairs, and the environment being created by whomever is sitting within the Oval Office, and how that impacts industries.
When I first got here, public affairs was not in the conversation. It was not part of what executives were really valuing. I haven't seen that change until the last 18 months, since the new administration. This second term has really solidified the focus that the tech industry in particular needs to have on public affairs, on how technology and AI are regulated or not regulated, and how that will impact companies' bottom line. They have to monitor what's happening in Washington.
Not every company below the tier of titans of industry needs to develop a profile in DC. But what is absolutely necessary is an understanding of DC and how it works, and an understanding of the regulatory and public affairs environment, and how it could or would impact your organization. You use that awareness to inform your strategy, so that you're not caught flat-footed, and you're not learning about how DC works in the midst of an issue or a crisis.
What is absolutely necessary is an understanding of DC and how it works, and an understanding of the regulatory and public affairs environment, and how it could or would impact your organization.
AI has a PR problem right now. For AI companies, and for the banks and healthcare companies using it, trust is the biggest asset they have. What do the most trusted companies do well?
EQ and that human element are more important than ever within the context of emerging AI. AI is critically important. It's going to be driving businesses, it's transforming the way we work, it's transforming the workforce and the output. However, there is no substitute for a human understanding of a situation, of a relationship, of an issue. Trust is driven by relationships, it's driven by interaction, it's driven by authenticity, it's driven by transparency.
The companies that are doing it well are leading with trust, transparency and authenticity. They are perceived as organizations you can rely on, that mean what they say and say what they mean, and that are using AI to advance their business without ever losing their brand essence. Those companies that choose to outsource all of that to AI will become very two-dimensional, in my opinion.
Everyone talks about storytelling like it was invented yesterday. Have the fundamentals of a great story actually changed?
I don't think so. When social media first hit, we didn't realize in the moment that our strategic approach was not changing. The platforms were changing, and the way we disseminated information was changing very rapidly. Those who rose to the top always understood that communication strategy stayed at the center. The fly-by-night players were really focused on the platform or the technology.
If you look at 60 Minutes as the gold standard of a good story, then your question is answered. Those elements are the same. The data and the information are critically important, and in an age of disinformation and misinformation, being factually accurate is more important than ever. But what makes for a truly compelling story is overlaying that with a human element, an actual story. It comes from delving into aspects of humanity that AI may or may not be able to fully articulate, because it's based on human experiences. That combination of data and human-led experience equals storytelling in a way that only professional communicators can convey.
What makes for a truly compelling story is overlaying that with a human element, an actual story. It comes from delving into aspects of humanity that AI may or may not be able to fully articulate, because it's based on human experiences.
You're writing an open letter to CEOs building the future. What's the headline?
Be yourself.
Executives are so scripted, they're so trained, they're so counseled, that we see the missteps. We see videos of CEOs being staged eating a hamburger, or selecting an influencer they feel might reach a certain audience they're having a hard time reaching, so they do it via a third party. There is no substitute for that authentic, transparent executive, and consumers see it immediately.
Look at (JPMorgan Chase CEO) Jamie Dimon. He says what he means and means what he says, speaks his mind, and is incredibly authentic to his personality. He leans into himself during every interview. People trust him. They may not always agree with him, but they understand where he's coming from, and they're not shocked or surprised by his point of view.
Last one. What conversation in our field isn't happening that should be?
I'm so glad we are finally having the conversation about expert communicators having that seat at the table. The one I'd push on: we've seen millions of stories on audience segmentation and understanding your consumer or your user. Any company worth their salt has done a deep dive into who their users are. But it's taken on a bit of a mechanical, scientific persona. We could take a little bit of a sledgehammer to it, to make sure it's passing the smell test, and that we're actually still talking about real people.
