NYHUS COMMUNICATIONS - Key Persons
Job Titles:
- Director, Health Wellness Practice
Job Titles:
- ACCOUNT DIRECTOR and DEI LEAD
Brie is an experienced communicator, writer and project manager who has led multi-faceted projects for more than a decade, primarily in the nonprofit and government sectors. Her expertise includes strategy development, stakeholder engagement, and policy and budget analysis. As an Account Director at Nyhus, Brie leads the development and implementation of complex public relations and public affairs programs, serves as strategic lead for a diverse client portfolio and provides communications counsel and tactical oversight.
Brie believes strongly that companies, organizations and their leaders play an integral role in eliminating barriers of racism and discrimination in the workplace. Driven by her passion and growing expertise, Brie guides Nyhus' diversity, equity and inclusion strategy to ensure the company evolves in ways that strengthen our ability to serve our clients, partners and community. She leads an internal working group responsible for establishing DEI goals for the firm, identifying priorities and metrics, and implementing initiatives that will contribute to long-term systemic change. She also develops and executes programs on behalf of clients to advance DEI in their workplaces and help bring greater awareness to their policies, communications and actions.
Brie holds a certificate in DEI in the workplace from University of South Florida's Muma College of Business. She is a member of the Seattle Metropolitan Chamber of Commerce's equity committee and the IPREX committee on diversity, equity and inclusion.
Prior to joining Nyhus, Brie spent more than six years managing a global health economics research project at the University of Washington's Department of Global Health where she led the external communications and dissemination strategy for a seminal global health publication, stakeholder outreach and engagement, and oversight of standard operating procedures for a multi-million-dollar grant. Prior to UW, Brie spent four years in Washington, D.C. where she served as a staffer in the office of U.S. Congressman Brian Baird. She managed a complex portfolio of federal policy pertaining to education, trade, budgetary and judiciary issues, and provided interim media and communications oversight.
Brie earned her master's degree in public administration from the George Washington University and her bachelor's degree in politics and government from University of Puget Sound where she was a member of the women's basketball team. Brie has served as a volunteer board member with the Greenwood Community Council in Seattle since 2017.
As an outdoor enthusiast born and raised in the Pacific Northwest, Brie can be found most weekends on one of Washington's beautiful trails hiking with her husband, Harry, mountain biking with friends, or enjoying a weekend getaway in the San Juan Islands.
Christina brings to the Nyhus team over a decade of experience in strategic communications and systems building, as well as a proven record of designing and implementing successful public affairs, fundraising and communications campaigns in nonprofit, government and multisector environments. She has a demonstrated success in leading complex initiatives and extensive experience building multi-year partnerships with community-based organizations, high-profile individuals and government entities.
Prior to joining Nyhus, Christina was a major gifts officer at the University of Washington, working with a diverse portfolio of stakeholders to shape programmatic priorities and secure visionary funding for the UW's Division of Student Life.
Before that, Christina was the Community Engagement Manager for the Washington State Department of Health (DOH) where she designed and carried out a comprehensive strategic plan for Washington's Crisis Standards of Care Community Engagement project and was a key contributor to the final report that informed statewide public health policy.
In addition to her work at the UW and DOH, Christina has deep experience working in various nonprofits (foundations, direct service, housing, advocacy, political, public health, education) where she has developed and deployed complex, results-driven campaigns.
Christina is most happy when solving problems, engaging in physical activity (especially outdoors), or when she's caught in a laughing jag with family and friends. Born and raised in sunny Arizona, Christina is making up for lost time exploring every natural body of water the Pacific Northwest has to offer. She can often be found experimenting with a new recipe or hosting loved ones over delicious drinks and food. She makes a point to let her passion for justice and equity seep into everywhere she spends her time.
Christina has served in a variety of roles in her community including as a Girl Scout Troop Leader, YearUp Mentor and various scholarship selection committees.
Elena is a creative, highly organized administrator with a passion for managing fast-paced, dynamic offices. She believes in building intentional, effective solutions that exemplify the values and mission of the organization and allow teams to flourish. As a writer and bibliophile, she brings her dedication to clear, meaningful communication to her work. Elena coordinates the day-to-day operations at the Nyhus HUB, assists with team events and special projects, and provides direct scheduling and organizational support to the executive team.
Elena earned a bachelor's degree from Seattle University with majors in creative writing and interdisciplinary arts. While pursuing her degree, she was a Resident Assistant for two years and served as president of Alpha Sigma Nu, the honor society of Jesuit universities. In these roles, she established campus-wide programming that created opportunities for meaningful connections between students, faculty, and administrators. She also served as secretary for the school's chapter of Alpha Phi Omega, a coeducational service fraternity, through which she organized and promoted volunteer events on and off campus.
Most recently, Elena oversaw the financial and administrative operations of Seattle Natural Medicine, a naturopathic healthcare practice in downtown Seattle. During the COVID-19 pandemic, she worked closely with the practice to navigate the changing landscape of healthcare and communicate these shifts effectively to patients, contractors, and vendors. She also guided the evolution of office procedures to meet the challenges of transitioning to a remote practice. In previous roles, Elena coordinated patient care at a neuropsychology clinic, provided legal administrative support, and worked as an independent graphic designer and copy writer.
Elena is always seeking new opportunities to learn and explore, and she has enjoyed a variety of adventures, including studying in a Benedictine Monastery, walking El Camino in Spain, hiking a third of the Appalachian Trail, and writing her first novel. She has visited all 50 states and has lived in 6 of them. Although she's found something to love about everywhere she's been, Elena feels most at home here in the Pacific Northwest. In her free time, you can find Elena writing in a coffee shop, hiking in the North Cascades, running in Discovery Park with her husband and two dogs, or lindy-hopping at The Century Ballroom.
Emily brings to the Nyhus team deep understanding of public relations and marketing. A creative leader and journalist with more than two decades in communications, PR and marketing roles at publishers, nonprofits, and public agencies, she excels at telling compelling stories across traditional and digital media.
As a senior consultant, Emily provides arts-related organizations, nonprofits and treasured city assets like the Pacific Science Center well-balanced communications strategies that raise public awareness, defend brand reputations and drive stakeholder engagement.
Prior to joining Nyhus, Emily served as the Director of Marketing for the Pike Place Market Preservation and Development Authority, where she managed a multi-year communications strategy for a $74 million expansion of the historic market.
Emily received her master's degree in journalism from Columbia University. Her post graduate career took her to Santa Fe, NM, where she covered the state capital for the Albuquerque Journal and to Buenos Aires, Argentina, where she reported on tech and learned to tango.
She founded Luminosity Public Relations and Marketing in 2018 to serve local organizations focused on environmental conservation and doing good in our community. She is a board member of Sealife Response, Rehab and Research (SR3), a science-based organization and marine life hospital dedicated to improving the health of marine wildlife.
Job Titles:
- VICE PRESIDENT
- Expert Strategic and Financial Leader
Karen is an expert strategic and financial leader with a passion for helping organizations and individuals thrive. She brings more than two decades of experience in business leadership roles in for-profit and non-profit organizations. As Vice President and member of our executive team, Karen stewards Nyhus' day-to-day administrative, financial and operational functions and delivers strategic insights and opportunities for the organization. She is passionate about bringing actionable intelligence to the Nyhus team.
Prior to joining Nyhus, Karen consulted with a variety of organizations on strategy development and execution as well as project and process management. Prior to that, Karen served as deputy director for grants management in global development at the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation. In that capacity, she led a team on all strategic and tactical aspects of grant administration, including a major initiative to streamline the grant-making process across the foundation.
Prior to joining the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation, Karen served in a variety of strategic and financial leadership roles at Weyerhaeuser Company, a global forest products company. During her time at Weyerhaeuser she led work in strategic and financial analysis, acquisitions and divestitures, and business and corporate strategic planning, to name a few. She combined her passion for giving back to the community with her belief in the company's mission to ultimately lead the Weyerhaeuser Company foundation as its president.
Karen received her Master of Management from Northwestern University with an emphasis in strategy, organization behavior and international business, and her Bachelor of Business Administration from Iowa State University.
Raised in the Chicago area in a family of immigrants, Karen enjoys hearing family stories and traveling and experiencing other cultures. She is passionate about the beauty of the Pacific Northwest and enjoys spending time hiking with her husband, horse-back riding, and seeing all the Pacific Northwest has to offer.
Karen is a graduate of Seattle University's Executive Leadership Program and Seattle's Leadership Tomorrow community leader development program. She volunteers with Leadership Tomorrow on the Screening & Selection Committee, and is a former board member. Karen is treasurer of IPREX, a global communication platform for member firms to collaborate on best practices and bring world-class solutions to clients.
Job Titles:
- Partner
- President
- Expert
- Leadership Fellow of the Henry M. Jackson Foundation
Marc is an expert communicator, business leader and strategist with a passion for executive communications, crisis management, thought leadership, media relations and international engagement.
As president, Marc leads the talented Nyhus team and provides senior-level counsel to the firm's diverse clients. He oversees the Nyhus executive communications practice, developing strategies and creating speeches, articles and other leadership communications for executives in a wide range of industries.
Marc also heads Nyhus' growing crisis communications work, helping clients prepare for and manage reputational challenges, drawing on his expertise in media relations, crisis messaging and internal communications. Marc is adept at gathering information, analyzing complex situations and synthesizing clear, compelling content.
Marc cares deeply about helping visionary leaders build awareness and support for their work and business goals. He excels at solving problems and bringing together intersecting interests, people and priorities to identify the best path forward. Marc develops powerful community engagement strategies to ensure his clients are connected to the stakeholders that matter most. He has expertise in the health care, technology, transportation, financial services, legal and nonprofit sectors. He is the executive champion for Nyhus' diversity, equity and inclusion work.
Prior to joining Nyhus in 2013, Marc spent over a decade living in, studying and engaging professionally with China. He previously worked at the National Committee on U.S.-China Relations, the nation's foremost organization promoting constructive Sino-American relations.
The Puget Sound Business Journal recognized Marc in 2020 as a ‘40 Under 40' honoree. Marc is a leadership fellow of the Henry M. Jackson Foundation, and former fellow of the World Affairs Council of Seattle. He is the board chair of the Washington State China Relations Council, a former board member of the Economic Development Council of Seattle and King County, and a member of the National Committee on U.S.-China Relations.
Marc received his master's degree from Columbia University, where he focused on international relations, Chinese foreign policy and media. He is a graduate of Wesleyan University in Connecticut.
A native of Lincoln, Nebraska, Marc's commitment to Cornhusker football is surpassed only by his love of all things guitar. He is an avid bike rider and carves out as much time as possible to spend with his family.
Job Titles:
- Chief Executive Officer
- Founder
Roger Nyhus is the founder and chief executive officer of Nyhus, one of Seattle's leading communications and public affairs firms.
Roger is a trusted adviser, professional communicator, strategist and problem solver who advises CEOs, elected officials and civic leaders on their most challenging issues and important business priorities. Roger also is a skilled crisis communications expert.
Since founding his firm in 1994, Roger has counseled regional, national and international leaders in health care and global health, energy and sustainability, travel and tourism, technology and innovation, international trade, real estate development, and arts and culture. Roger and his team pride themselves on their passion, candid counsel, integrity and on-target results.
Roger firmly believes that effective communications can change the world, and Nyhus is at the center of many of the most important and impactful conversations driving transformation in our community, nation and world.
Roger has a proven ability to anticipate changing business or political conditions, make a rapid and accurate assessment of opportunities and threats, and respond with creative communications solutions. He is an expert at managing crisis communications with an exceptional ability to proactively reach diverse and complex audiences. Roger thrives in high-pressure, dynamic situations.
Roger's career spans senior leadership roles in both business and government. He was the longest-serving communications director for Washington Gov. Gary Locke, the nation's first Chinese American governor. Roger developed the successful branding, public relations and advocacy campaign supporting the state's winning bid for development of Boeing's newest airplane, the 787. Prior to the Governor's Office, Roger advised Seattle Mayor Paul Schell during his final six months in office.
Roger gravitates toward high-profile, complex issues, and he has advised several cutting-edge technology startup companies. He was a member of the executive team and director of corporate communications at Teledesic, a visionary technology startup founded by telecommunications pioneer Craig McCaw and Microsoft co-founder Bill Gates. Roger was responsible for Teledesic's global communications program, with a focus on Europe, Asia and Africa.
Roger began his public relations career working in financial communications for major banks and global investment firms, including Frank Russell Company, now Russell Investments. Prior to his PR career, Roger was a general assignment and political reporter for The Associated Press in Seattle; Olympia, Wash.; and Juneau, Alaska.
Roger has a bachelor's degree in communications from Washington State University's Edward R. Murrow College of Communication. He is a board member of the Greater Seattle Chamber of Commerce and the Downtown Seattle Association; an advisory council member at the Henry Art Museum; and an affiliate member of the professional advisory board of Washington State University's Edward R. Murrow College of Communication. He previously chaired the Seattle Chamber's Community Development Roundtable and served as a member of the board of governors for the Human Rights Campaign, the nation's largest LGBTQ civil rights organization.
Roger is a proud member of the Chinook Indian Nation.