Every message is a decision first.
Counsel for the moments when reputation, trust and change are on the line.
Consequential business moments demand clear thinking before the first word is written. Charlene Wheeless has been the chief communications officer in four companies, through a billion-dollar sale, a 120-year-old brand brought out of the shadows, and crises with legal, political and human rights stakes. Now she advises CEOs, CCOs and executive teams on the choices that shape reputation, trust and change, including the shift to AI.
Discuss Your Communications ChallengeThe message has to hold up in the business.
Most communications problems start as leadership decisions. Charlene works upstream, where the choice is still being made, so the story leaders tell matches what the business can deliver. She has sat in the CCO seat at a $40B private company, a public company through a billion-dollar acquisition, and a defense business under government scrutiny. She knows what the call feels like from the inside.
Executive Communications and Reputation Counsel
For CEOs and executive teams facing scrutiny, a defining announcement or a crisis that tests trust.
You walk away with: a clear position, stakeholder map, message architecture and leaders ready for the hard questions.
Change and Transaction Communications
For mergers, acquisitions, restructuring and transformation, when people decide in days whether to trust what comes next.
You walk away with: a Day One plan, leader talking points, sequencing across audiences and a way to track sentiment.
CCO and Communications Leader Advisory
For chief communications officers and their teams stepping into bigger mandates and a seat at the strategy table.
You walk away with: a sharper operating model, stronger C-suite influence and a team built for what the business needs next.
Leading Communications Through AI-Driven Change
For communications functions rethinking how work gets done, and for leaders explaining AI to employees who are uneasy about it.
You walk away with: clear rules for AI use and review, redesigned roles, and an adoption story employees believe.
"Advice that was honest, based on experiential truths, and worth acting on."
Corey duBrowa, Global CEO, Burson, and a client since day oneThree ways in.
Strategic Sprint
A focused 30-day engagement on one high-stakes moment, from diagnosis to plan.
Ongoing Counsel
A trusted advisor on call for the CEO or CCO through a period of change.
Team Sessions
Working sessions for communications teams and leadership groups.
She has made the call from the inside.
"She led with competence and fortitude and really ripped us from the shadows. She helped make strategic communications a core part of our company strategy. Today we are in such a better place, and it is all traceable back to Charlene's work."
Craig Albert, President & Chief Operating Officer, BechtelCareer & Scale
- Principal VP, Global Corporate Affairs, Bechtel ($40B)
- VP, Communications & Site Executive, Raytheon IIS
- SVP, Global Marketing & Communications, AMS (acquired by CGI)
- VP, Corporate & Marketing Communications, DynCorp
- International Advisory Council, APCO Worldwide
- Founder & CEO, Wheeless Advisory Group
Recognition
- 2026 PRWeek Hall of Fame Honoree
- PRWeek 50 Most Influential, five consecutive years
- Raytheon CEO Award, first communications executive to receive it
- Past Chair, Arthur W. Page Society. Trustee, Institute for Public Relations
- Guest lecturer: Harvard, Georgetown, Boston University, American
- MA, Public Communication. MBA. TS-SCI cleared
It's Choice, not Chance that changes everything.