MHP Communications has strengthened its crisis & risk team with the appointment of senior crisis specialist Michaela Gray.

Gray joins from Golin, where she led the agency’s media training and issues management offering, as well as delivery of corporate reputation programmes for many leading household brands, including Cadbury, npower, Sainsbury’s and Worldpay.

A former television and radio journalist, Gray will advise MHP’s clients on their crisis communications and lead MHP’s broadcast media training offer. She will report to Barnaby Fry, MHP’s head of crisis & risk.

Her appointment will also bolster the agency’s strategic media unit, which is staffed by former national newspaper journalists, including Ian Kirby, former political editor of the News of the World, and Keith Gladdis, former executive news editor of the Daily Mail.

Fry says, “In the networked age, where social media can destroy an organisation’s reputation, crisis communications has never been more important. Michaela’s broadcast background, combined with her experience advising clients on their crisis protocols, will be of enormous value to clients and colleagues alike.”

Gray adds, “With an enviable roster of global brands, MHP is cementing its reputation for clever and creative crisis management. I’m thrilled to join the team during this exciting period of growth and I look forward to tackling the complex challenges our clients face.”

MHP’s crisis & risk practice helps clients prepare and respond to reputational threats and rebuild following a crisis. Combining boardroom and newsroom experience, the team advises Fortune 500 and FTSE 100 companies in the retail, financial, media and property sectors, among others.