Mark Hass

Mark Hass, Partner & CEO

Mark Hass is Partner and CEO of MH Group Communications, a New York-based consultancy that specializes in integrating traditional C-Suite corporate communications services and stakeholder engagement with the opportunities provided by emerging social networks and other digital tools.

Mark has three decades of experience as a journalist, entrepreneur and communications professional. Previously, he was the chief executive officer of MS&L Worldwide, a leading global communications firm with 54 offices and specialized consultancies in 27 countries. He was responsible for all aspects of the firm’s performance and acted as a senior counselor to many of the world’s most prestigious organizations and companies, including General Motors, Procter & Gamble, Sanofi-Aventis and Eli Lilly.

He joined MS&L in 2002, when his public relations agency, Hass Associates, was acquired and merged into MS&L. As the founder and CEO of Hass Associates, he was best known for providing strategic counsel to clients at times of risk and change, as well as work integrating online strategies into the communications activities of global companies. Mark has continued to champion innovative work with blogs, social networks and mobile technologies, as well as media and influencer strategies for building and managing reputation.

Prior to entering the public relations industry, Mark worked as a reporter and editor for 16 years at The Miami Herald, The Syracuse Post-Standard and, lastly, as assistant managing editor at The Detroit News, where his staff won the Pulitzer Prize.

Mark is a trustee of the Institute for Public Relations, an independent nonprofit dedicated to the science of PR research and measurement, and is a member of the two key industry leadership organizations, the Arthur Page Society and PR Seminar. He also serves on the Corporate Service Council of the Points of Light Foundation/Hands on Network and is a member of Business Executives for National Security.

Mark graduated magna cum laude from the State University of New York at Buffalo with a baccalaureate degree in contemporary American and British literature, attended the University of Maryland journalism masters program, and holds advanced certifications as a rescue scuba diver. He is the only American-born child of Eastern European immigrants, and was educated in New York public schools. He has a 23-year-old daughter and currently lives in New York City.

Courtney Barnes

Courtney Barnes, Vice President & Director of Content Strategy

Courtney Barnes is a Vice President and Director of Content Strategy at MH Group Communications. Her responsibilities include content creation/thought leadership development, as well as training clients on how to integrate social media strategies into their overall communications models.

Most recently, Courtney co-authored Digital Strategies for Powerful Corporate Communications (McGraw-Hill, August 2009), a corporate survival guide for the Web 2.0 world. She is also the co-founder of Think Communications, a strategic communications advisory that helps organizational leaders establish and enhance their executive voice and influence through the use of social media.

Prior to joining MH Group, Courtney was the Editor of PR News, where she managed editorial content and wrote on corporate communications, marketing and public relations, with particular expertise digital communications and the strategic integration of social media into business communications models. In addition to her writing and editing responsibilities, Courtney was an active guest lecturer for executive education programs and industry events.

Courtney has contributed to thought leadership pieces appearing in academic and business journals, including the Harvard Business Review and the Journal of Business Strategy. Previously, Courtney was an associate with Communications Consulting Worldwide, a multi-disciplinary consulting unit of Fleishman-Hillard. She has also worked for Condé Nast Traveler and Washingtonian magazines.

Courtney graduated from Northwestern University’s Medill School of Journalism with a B.S. in Journalism and a B.A. in Middle Eastern Studies.

Daniel Bingham

Daniel Bingham, Vice President & Director of Social Media

Daniel Bingham is VP/Director of Social Media. His responsibilities include developing and managing strategic social media campaigns for MH Group Communications clients.

Previously, Daniel served as Director of Interactive Communications at Dukas Public Relations, a Manhattan-based public relations agency. His focus was on designing and executing effective communications programs for corporations by integrating cutting-edge social media strategies with traditional public relations campaigns to achieve business objectives.

Daniel’s background also includes more than nine years of experience in both Silicon Valley and New York at global public relations agencies Hill & Knowlton and Edelman, where he managed digital and traditional communications programs for clients such as Apple, Samsung and Deloitte.

Daniel is a graduate of the University of California at Berkeley.

Leonard Niehoff

Leonard M. Niehoff, Senior Counsel & Director of Risk and Litigation Communications

Len Niehoff works with MH Group clients and their legal counsel to develop effective communications strategies addressing the unique challenges presented by sensitive and high-profile litigation.

Len’s communications counseling is informed by his 25 years of experience as a litigator with one of the nation’s largest and oldest law firms. In that capacity, he has handled major and highly visible cases for corporate, public sector, institutional and media clients. This includes representing the University of Michigan in its historic defense of its affirmative action policies and representing 60 Minutes and other prominent media clients.

He knows from firsthand experience the importance of winning not only in court but in the court of public opinion.

Len has spoken widely on communication and media relations in the litigation context, is the author of more than one-hundred publications on various legal and litigation strategy issues, and is currently listed in The Best Lawyers in America, Who’s Who in American Law, Chambers USA Leading Lawyers for Business and Super Lawyers. He is a Fellow of the Litigation Counsel of America.

He currently teaches Evidence, Media Law and Legal Ethics at the University of Michigan Law School.

Note: MH Group does not provide legal services and this is not an offer of legal services.