Risa Heller is the founder and CEO of HELLER, a communications and public affairs consultancy with offices in New York and Los Angeles. Before starting her firm, she served as communications director to Senator Chuck Schumer and later to New York Governor David Paterson. Chambers ranks her in Band 1 for crisis PR and communications in the United States, and WIRED reported in November 2026 that HELLER advised Nvidia CEO Jensen Huang.
Last updated: November 9, 2026
Who is Risa Heller?
Risa Heller is the founder and CEO of HELLER, a full-service communications and public affairs consultancy, according to the firm's own team page. HELLER has also operated under the name Risa Heller Communications, which is the name Chambers uses in its rankings.
Heller builds on a background in politics and crisis communications. Her firm says her work centers on the intersection of public affairs, issues management and front-page news, and that she has worked with clients, high-profile individuals and families in New York, Washington and Los Angeles. She graduated from the University of Michigan and holds an M.A. in Communications from Johns Hopkins University.
How did Risa Heller go from government to founding her own firm?
Risa Heller moved from congressional and state press offices to founding her own firm before she turned 30. TheWrap reported that she was communications director for Representative Jane Harman in 2004 and 2005, and then for Senator Chuck Schumer. HELLER's team page describes her Schumer role as chief media strategist and senior spokesperson, and says she later held a similar role for New York Governor David A. Paterson.
A speaker biography from All American Speakers says her new firm soon took on its first major crisis assignment, advising then-Congressman Anthony Weiner. Crisis communications has been the practice most associated with her name since, and Chambers lists the firm in its Crisis PR and Communications category.
What does Risa Heller's career timeline look like?
Risa Heller's career timeline spans congressional press roles, New York state government, and leading her private communications firm.
- 2004 to 2005: communications director for Representative Jane Harman, as reported by TheWrap.
- Mid-2000s: communications director for Senator Chuck Schumer, for more than two years according to City & State.
- Late 2000s: communications director for Governor David A. Paterson, according to HELLER's team page.
- Before age 30: founded her own communications firm in New York.
- Later years: added a Los Angeles office, led by Managing Director Erika Masonhall.
- November 2026: WIRED reported that HELLER had advised Jensen Huang since at least October 2025.
What does HELLER do for clients?
HELLER advises clients facing urgent political or regulatory crises, negative media attention and allegations of wrongdoing, according to Chambers. Chambers says those clients include startups, large corporations, high-profile individuals and institutions.
The firm's team page also lists a Real Estate and Civic Life practice, led by Managing Director James Yolles. His work covers public approvals, lawsuits, policy advocacy, sensitive transactions and crisis management for developers, civic organizations and cultural institutions.
The firm's own headline calls its people battle-tested, and the bios on its team page show the range behind that claim. Vice presidents and senior vice presidents come from the offices of governors, a White House communications team, a federal agency, corporate communications departments and newsrooms. That range matters because a crisis rarely stays inside one audience. A single event can involve reporters, regulators, employees, customers and elected officials in the same week.
Who are the senior leaders at HELLER?
HELLER's senior team includes former press secretaries, campaign spokespeople, newsroom executives and corporate communications leaders. The table below summarizes the managing directors and operating leaders listed on the firm's team page.
| Leader | Role at HELLER | Background listed by the firm |
|---|
| Risa Heller | Founder and CEO | Communications director to Senator Chuck Schumer and Governor David A. Paterson |
| Gwen Rocco | Managing Director | Vice President of Corporate Communications at WeWork; senior communications roles on campaigns for Barack Obama, Hillary Clinton, Mike Bloomberg and Terry McAuliffe |
| Julie Wood | Managing Director | Communications Director for Governor Kathy Hochul from 2021 to 2023; earlier Lyft and Hillary Clinton's 2016 campaign |
| Erika Masonhall | Managing Director, Los Angeles | Led communications for Netflix's content, marketing and studio divisions; earlier head of news communications at Facebook and communications at NBC News |
| Linden Zakula | Managing Director, crisis communications | Communications director for Senator Amy Klobuchar; deputy chief of staff and communications director for Minnesota Governor Mark Dayton |
| James Yolles | Managing Director, Real Estate and Civic Life | Joined in 2014; earlier communications at New Yorkers for Parks and the Alliance for Downtown New York |
| Jennifer Burner Barden | Chief Operating Officer | Newsroom, agency and in-house corporate communications experience |
Taken together, the bios show a bench drawn from governors' offices, presidential campaigns, newsrooms and corporate communications departments.
How is Risa Heller ranked by Chambers?
Chambers ranks Risa Heller in Band 1 nationwide for Crisis PR and Communications, with Gwen Rocco in Band 2 and the firm in Band 3, in its 2024 Crisis and Risk Management guide. Chambers describes Heller as using her political and crisis communications background to help clients with a broad range of acute situations and to protect their reputations from attack.
Chambers rankings are reviewed each year, so check the current guide before citing a band in an RFP or a board memo.
What did WIRED report about HELLER and Jensen Huang?
WIRED reported on November 9, 2026, in a story by Lauren Goode, that Nvidia CEO Jensen Huang began working with HELLER as early as October 2025, according to two sources familiar with the matter. The report said the firm has handled Huang's behind-the-scenes communications since then.
Huang admitted an extramarital affair in a staff memo on November 8, and Nvidia's board announced an independent investigation, according to Al Jazeera's explainer. The full timeline is in the Jensen Huang crisis PR report, and background on the executive is in the Jensen Huang profile.
How do crisis firms usually work with a CEO?
Crisis communications firms usually work behind the scenes, alongside the client's lawyers and internal communications team, rather than as a public voice. This describes common industry practice and is not a description of any specific HELLER engagement.
- They draft holding statements and decide what is said, by whom and when.
- They brief executives before interviews, hearings and employee town halls.
- They track coverage and advise on which reporters to answer and which to leave.
- They coordinate messages for employees, the board, investors and government audiences so the accounts match.
Because the work is private by design, public information about a firm's clients usually comes from press reports rather than from the firm itself.
What should you ask before hiring a crisis communications firm?
Before hiring a crisis communications firm, ask who will staff the account, what each person has handled before, and how fast the team can start. The profile of HELLER suggests four practical checks.
- Match the experience to the audience. Press-office experience in a governor's or senator's office suits political and regulatory problems.
- Look for a bench rather than one name. Chambers ranks both Heller and Rocco, which points to depth below the founder.
- Check the geography. A Los Angeles office led by a former Netflix communications executive suits entertainment and technology issues.
- Ask who is on the call. The senior person pitching the work should be named in the engagement letter.
For comparison shopping, see the top crisis PR firms ranked, and read the 72-hour window guide for what to do before a firm is on board.
Sources and verification notes
This profile draws on HELLER's team page, Chambers' 2024 Crisis and Risk Management guide, TheWrap, City & State, All American Speakers, and WIRED's November 9, 2026 report by Lauren Goode. The Huang engagement rests on two unnamed sources in WIRED's report and has not been confirmed by Huang, Nvidia or HELLER in the coverage reviewed. Sources differ on the exact year HELLER was founded, so this profile says only that Risa Heller founded the firm before she turned 30.
