Zeno Group has appointed Georg Schmitt, a renowned strategic communications expert, to its Reputation Advisory Board.

Schmitt spent over a decade serving on the Executive Committee of the World Economic Forum, leading initiatives in stakeholder management, media, corporate affairs, marketing, and business communications.

The Zeno Reputation Advisory Board includes former C-Suite and senior communications leaders from some of the world’s leading companies, who have advised CEOs, corporate boards and policy leaders. The Reputation Board members partner with Zeno’s leadership team and clients to leverage their unique C-Suite perspective to address reputational challenges and opportunities.  

"CCO and CMO lives are not getting easier,” said Schmitt. “The C-Suite expects you to be a trusted advisor across multiple issues with an ever-growing group of stakeholders. The wisdom of Zeno’s Reputation Advisory Board is that it brings people together who can fully relate to and empathize with the evolving challenges facing the C-Suite. I will bring my experience and perspective to help communications leaders work through a range of issues that matter to myriad stakeholders, internally and externally.”

The growth of Zeno’s Reputation Advisory Board and its application to taking new approaches to solving complex challenges is echoed in recent Zeno research. It cited that in today’s volatile climate, companies faced increased public scrutiny from all sides — and corporate reputations are constantly on the line. 84% of corporate leaders say that despite a challenging environment, issues are too important to disengage (Zeno Group Responsibility Reset 2024).

Schmitt joins other prestigious members of the Zeno Reputation Advisory Board that include Anne Toulouse, former Boeing CCO; Rosanna Fiske, former CCO of Royal Caribbean; Sheryl Battles, former DE&I communications leader at Pitney Bowes; and Jim King, former CCO of Scotts Miracle-Gro. The board’s collective expertise spans industries including consumer goods and services, education, financial services, manufacturing, sustainable business, technology, travel, hospitality and more.

“Georg brings a valuable global perspective through the lens of civil society,” said Mark Shadle, Zeno’s Chief Reputation Strategist and Global Managing Director of Corporate Affairs. “Georg’s global communications acumen and strategic mindset align perfectly with our mission to provide clients with informed and highly specialized perspectives during times of crisis and transformation. Georg’s participation will add an important dimension to our work in Europe and beyond.”