• Michael Colton

    Michael Colton

    A senior associate with Breakwater, Michael supports clients with day-to-day media and communications needs, including content development, coverage monitoring, and ad-hoc research requests. Michael joined the Breakwater team in February of 2024. Prior to coming aboard, he worked as a Corporate Communications intern with the Zeno Group, where he helped identify and articulate thought leadership and media relations strategies for clients ranging from leading biotech firms to top skincare brands. In addition to PR and communications experience, Michael has a variety of experience in content marketing and social media strategy. In 2023, he spearheaded social media strategy for the National LGBTQ+ Bar Association, a professional association of over 15,000 members; while in college, Michael worked as a content development specialist for Credibly Retail Capital, where he developed and executed organic social content and thought leadership pieces on behalf of the mid-sized credit firm. Michael graduated from Columbia University in 2022 with a major in History and a concentration in Economics. While in school, Michael served as an editor for the Blue & White, Columbia’s oldest literary magazine as well as a content supervisor for the Columbia Journal of Politics and Society. Additionally, he worked as a research and tech assistant in Columbia’s library system, where he connected students and faculty with scholarship resources in support of their academic work. Raised in the suburbs of Chicago, Michael is a die-hard Chicago Bears fan, in spite of their long history of mediocrity.

    Senior
    Associate

    michael@breakwaterstrategy.com

    A senior associate with Breakwater, Michael supports clients with day-to-day media and communications needs, including content development, coverage monitoring, and ad-hoc research requests.

    Michael joined the Breakwater team in February of 2024. Prior to coming aboard, he worked as a Corporate Communications intern with the Zeno Group, where he helped identify and articulate thought leadership and media relations strategies for clients ranging from leading biotech firms to top skincare brands.

    In addition to PR and communications experience, Michael has a variety of experience in content marketing and social media strategy. In 2023, he spearheaded social media strategy for the National LGBTQ+ Bar Association, a professional association of over 15,000 members; while in college, Michael worked as a content development specialist for Credibly Retail Capital, where he developed and executed organic social content and thought leadership pieces on behalf of the mid-sized credit firm.

    Michael graduated from Columbia University in 2022 with a major in History and a concentration in Economics. While in school, Michael served as an editor for the Blue & White, Columbia’s oldest literary magazine as well as a content supervisor for the Columbia Journal of Politics and Society. Additionally, he worked as a research and tech assistant in Columbia’s library system, where he connected students and faculty with scholarship resources in support of their academic work.

    Raised in the suburbs of Chicago, Michael is a die-hard Chicago Bears fan, in spite of their long history of mediocrity.

  • Patrick Conley

    Patrick Conley

    Patrick is an Associate Director at Breakwater Strategy, where he works with clients on stakeholder engagement, organizational strategy and reputation management. He brings experience across emerging technologies, international markets, and consumer brands, helping organizations navigate complex policy and business challenges from strategy to execution. Before joining Breakwater, Patrick completed internships with non-profits working in anti-corruption and conflict prevention, and worked on democracy and governance organization IRI’s Southern Africa team. In the latter role, he attended and helped organize political party trainings ahead of Angola’s 2022 General Elections and a regional party summit in Johannesburg. Patrick was born and raised in Madison, Wisconsin and graduated from Kenyon College with a degree in Political Science and African Diaspora studies. He spent four months studying in Accra, Ghana and travelled to Togo, Kenya and Tanzania after finishing his semester. He enjoys following Wisconsin sports teams, professional tennis and Brighton & Hove Albion.

    Associate
    Director

    patrick@breakwaterstrategy.com

    Patrick is an Associate Director at Breakwater Strategy, where he works with clients on stakeholder engagement, organizational strategy and reputation management. He brings experience across emerging technologies, international markets, and consumer brands, helping organizations navigate complex policy and business challenges from strategy to execution.

    Before joining Breakwater, Patrick completed internships with non-profits working in anti-corruption and conflict prevention, and worked on democracy and governance organization IRI’s Southern Africa team. In the latter role, he attended and helped organize political party trainings ahead of Angola’s 2022 General Elections and a regional party summit in Johannesburg.

    Patrick was born and raised in Madison, Wisconsin and graduated from Kenyon College with a degree in Political Science and African Diaspora studies. He spent four months studying in Accra, Ghana and travelled to Togo, Kenya and Tanzania after finishing his semester. He enjoys following Wisconsin sports teams, professional tennis and Brighton & Hove Albion.

  • Austin Cook

    Austin Cook

    Austin Cook is a Director at Breakwater Strategy, where he draws on a decade of experience in public affairs, crisis communications, and media strategy. He has led high-stakes communications efforts for political campaigns, elected officials, and businesses, helping clients navigate complex reputational challenges in fast-moving environments.  Before joining Breakwater, Austin served as Communications Director for Elissa Slotkin’s successful 2024 U.S. Senate campaign, where he oversaw all media engagement, rapid response, and messaging strategy in one of the most competitive elections in the country. He previously served as Slotkin’s Communications Director in the U.S. House of Representatives, managing press strategy on national security, emerging technology, and defense policy. He also helped Slotkin prepare for her response to President Donald Trump’s 2025 Joint Address to Congress. Earlier in his career, Austin was Communications Director for the North Carolina Democratic Party during the 2020 election cycle and held key communications roles on Senator Amy Klobuchar’s presidential campaign. He also has agency-side experience advising Fortune 500 companies and advocacy groups on strategic messaging and reputation management.  Austin holds a bachelor’s degree in politics and international Affairs from Wake Forest University, where he served as editor-in-chief of the student newspaper, and a master’s degree in national security policy from Duke University. He lives in Brooklyn with his girlfriend and their dog.

    Director

    austin@breakwaterstrategy.com

    Austin Cook is a Director at Breakwater Strategy, where he draws on a decade of experience in public affairs, crisis communications, and media strategy. He has led high-stakes communications efforts for political campaigns, elected officials, and businesses, helping clients navigate complex reputational challenges in fast-moving environments. 

    Before joining Breakwater, Austin served as Communications Director for Elissa Slotkin’s successful 2024 U.S. Senate campaign, where he oversaw all media engagement, rapid response, and messaging strategy in one of the most competitive elections in the country. He previously served as Slotkin’s Communications Director in the U.S. House of Representatives, managing press strategy on national security, emerging technology, and defense policy. He also helped Slotkin prepare for her response to President Donald Trump’s 2025 Joint Address to Congress.

    Earlier in his career, Austin was Communications Director for the North Carolina Democratic Party during the 2020 election cycle and held key communications roles on Senator Amy Klobuchar’s presidential campaign. He also has agency-side experience advising Fortune 500 companies and advocacy groups on strategic messaging and reputation management. 

    Austin holds a bachelor’s degree in politics and international Affairs from Wake Forest University, where he served as editor-in-chief of the student newspaper, and a master’s degree in national security policy from Duke University. He lives in Brooklyn with his girlfriend and their dog.

  • Sam Fossum

    Sam Fossum

    Sam is an Associate Director at Breakwater Strategy. As a former journalist, Sam works with clients to help them build insightful communications strategies and manage reputational risks. Sam has a deep interest and understanding of the media landscape and is passionate about helping prepare clients for high-stakes appearances. He is particularly focused on the intersection of financial services, emerging technologies and policymaking.    Prior to Breakwater, Sam was an Emmy-award-winning producer/reporter who covered the White House and Capitol Hill for CNN. He regularly filed stories for digital and worked with the network’s top correspondents and anchors. His stories spanned the intersection of politics and public policy, from debt ceiling negotiations and former House Speaker Kevin McCarthy’s ouster to the 2024 presidential campaign.   After being born in Anchorage, Alaska, Sam spent his childhood in Russia before later moving to the UK. He then returned to the U.S. for university, graduating from the Johns Hopkins University in Baltimore with a bachelor’s degree in History and Writing Seminars. He first got involved in communications and journalism while writing for the undergraduate newspaper.   When not in the office, you can often find Sam tinkering with his sourdough starter, exploring a new museum or finding a quiet place to enjoy a good book.  

    Associate
    Director

    sam@breakwaterstrategy.com

    Sam is an Associate Director at Breakwater Strategy. As a former journalist, Sam works with clients to help them build insightful communications strategies and manage reputational risks. Sam has a deep interest and understanding of the media landscape and is passionate about helping prepare clients for high-stakes appearances. He is particularly focused on the intersection of financial services, emerging technologies and policymaking.   

    Prior to Breakwater, Sam was an Emmy-award-winning producer/reporter who covered the White House and Capitol Hill for CNN. He regularly filed stories for digital and worked with the network’s top correspondents and anchors. His stories spanned the intersection of politics and public policy, from debt ceiling negotiations and former House Speaker Kevin McCarthy’s ouster to the 2024 presidential campaign.  

    After being born in Anchorage, Alaska, Sam spent his childhood in Russia before later moving to the UK. He then returned to the U.S. for university, graduating from the Johns Hopkins University in Baltimore with a bachelor’s degree in History and Writing Seminars. He first got involved in communications and journalism while writing for the undergraduate newspaper.  

    When not in the office, you can often find Sam tinkering with his sourdough starter, exploring a new museum or finding a quiet place to enjoy a good book.  

  • Gary Ginsberg

    Gary Ginsberg

    Gary Ginsberg is a lawyer, corporate advisor, author and venture fund partner, serving at the intersection of media, politics, investing and philanthropy for more than 25 years. A native of Buffalo, New York, Ginsberg is a magna cum laude, Phi Beta Kappa graduate of Brown University and the Columbia University School of Law, where he was a Harlan Fiske Stone Scholar.  He began his legal career as an attorney at Simpson Thacher & Bartlett. He left the firm in 1992 for a position in the Clinton presidential campaign and later served in the Clinton Administration in the Office of the White House Counsel and at the U.S. Department of Justice. In 1995, Ginsberg became Senior Editor and legal counsel of George, the monthly political magazine started by John F. Kennedy, Jr. Ginsberg spent eleven years at News Corporation as the company’s Executive Vice President of Global Marketing and Corporate Affairs and a member of the Chairman’s seven-person Executive Management Committee. In 2010, he joined Time Warner as the entertainment company’s Executive Vice President for Corporate Marketing and Communications, where he led the company’s integrated sales and marketing division, the Time Warner Foundation and was responsible for evangelizing the company’s major initiatives across the media landscape. After the sale of the company to AT&T in 2018, Ginsberg joined Softbank as the company’s Senior Vice President and Global Chief Communications Officer, where he remained until December 2020. Ginsberg is the author of the New York Times bestseller First Friends: The Powerful, Unsung (And Unelected) People Who Shaped Our Presidents (Twelve). He has published opinion pieces in The New York Times, the Wall Street Journal and CNN.com, and was a former on-air political contributor to MSNBC. Ginsberg is the chairman of the Board of New Visions for Public Schools, New York City’s premier educational reform organization; he is also a Director of The City, the online not-for-profit news service covering NYC, and Malaria No More.  From 2015-2018, Ginsberg was an adjunct professor at the Columbia University Business School where he co-taught the course Entrepreneurship in Incumbent Media. He is also a member of the Council on Foreign Relations. Ginsberg is a founding partner of 25Madison, the New York City-based VC firm and start-up studio.  He is also a director of Schrodinger, Inc. (Nasdaq: SDGR) and Townsquare Media, Inc. (NYSE: TSQ). He lives in New York City with his wife Susanna Aaron and two sons.

    Senior
    Advisor

    Gary Ginsberg is a lawyer, corporate advisor, author and venture fund partner, serving at the intersection of media, politics, investing and philanthropy for more than 25 years.

    A native of Buffalo, New York, Ginsberg is a magna cum laude, Phi Beta Kappa graduate of Brown University and the Columbia University School of Law, where he was a Harlan Fiske Stone Scholar.  He began his legal career as an attorney at Simpson Thacher & Bartlett. He left the firm in 1992 for a position in the Clinton presidential campaign and later served in the Clinton Administration in the Office of the White House Counsel and at the U.S. Department of Justice. In 1995, Ginsberg became Senior Editor and legal counsel of George, the monthly political magazine started by John F. Kennedy, Jr.

    Ginsberg spent eleven years at News Corporation as the company’s Executive Vice President of Global Marketing and Corporate Affairs and a member of the Chairman’s seven-person Executive Management Committee. In 2010, he joined Time Warner as the entertainment company’s Executive Vice President for Corporate Marketing and Communications, where he led the company’s integrated sales and marketing division, the Time Warner Foundation and was responsible for evangelizing the company’s major initiatives across the media landscape. After the sale of the company to AT&T in 2018, Ginsberg joined Softbank as the company’s Senior Vice President and Global Chief Communications Officer, where he remained until December 2020.

    Ginsberg is the author of the New York Times bestseller First Friends: The Powerful, Unsung (And Unelected) People Who Shaped Our Presidents (Twelve). He has published opinion pieces in The New York Times, the Wall Street Journal and CNN.com, and was a former on-air political contributor to MSNBC.

    Ginsberg is the chairman of the Board of New Visions for Public Schools, New York City’s premier educational reform organization; he is also a Director of The City, the online not-for-profit news service covering NYC, and Malaria No More.  From 2015-2018, Ginsberg was an adjunct professor at the Columbia University Business School where he co-taught the course Entrepreneurship in Incumbent Media. He is also a member of the Council on Foreign Relations.

    Ginsberg is a founding partner of 25Madison, the New York City-based VC firm and start-up studio.  He is also a director of Schrodinger, Inc. (Nasdaq: SDGR) and Townsquare Media, Inc. (NYSE: TSQ).

    He lives in New York City with his wife Susanna Aaron and two sons.
  • Emi Groth

    Emi Groth

    Emi Groth is a Senior Associate at Breakwater Strategy. Based in San Francisco, she collaborates with colleagues across the BWS firm to support clients on announcement planning, research asks, media relations, and communications strategy. Prior to Breakwater, Emi worked at a boutique PR agency focused on early-stage tech companies and startups. While there, she developed strategic communications plans, managed media outreach campaigns, drafted messaging materials, and helped emerging companies shape their narratives.Emi graduated from the University of California, Santa Barbara with a Bachelor of Arts in Communication and a minor in Art History. While attending undergrad, she played on UCSB’s collegiate D1 women’s soccer team for three years. Later, she studied abroad in Florence, Italy, interning as an art gallery assistant. As a California native, you'll find Emi outside hiking coastal trails or local parks, though she's just as content at home trying out new recipes or getting hooked on the latest TV show or movie.

    Senior
    Associate

    emi@breakwaterstrategy.com

    Emi Groth is a Senior Associate at Breakwater Strategy. Based in San Francisco, she collaborates with colleagues across the BWS firm to support clients on announcement planning, research asks, media relations, and communications strategy.

    Prior to Breakwater, Emi worked at a boutique PR agency focused on early-stage tech companies and startups. While there, she developed strategic communications plans, managed media outreach campaigns, drafted messaging materials, and helped emerging companies shape their narratives.Emi graduated from the University of California, Santa Barbara with a Bachelor of Arts in Communication and a minor in Art History. While attending undergrad, she played on UCSB’s collegiate D1 women’s soccer team for three years. Later, she studied abroad in Florence, Italy, interning as an art gallery assistant.

    As a California native, you’ll find Emi outside hiking coastal trails or local parks, though she’s just as content at home trying out new recipes or getting hooked on the latest TV show or movie.

  • Terry Wade

    Terry Wade

    Terry Wade is a strategic communications advisor who helps energy companies navigate complex public affairs challenges, drawing on more than two decades of experience across media, communications, international affairs, and the energy sector. Based in Houston, TX, Wade is the founder of TLW Consulting. He is fluent in Spanish and Portuguese and has held senior leadership positions at some of the world's largest energy, public relations, and media companies. He has extensive experience engaging corporate leaders, public officials, and top-tier journalists to manage reputation, mitigate risk, and craft narratives that resonate with diverse stakeholders.  Wade served as Global Head of Media Relations at ExxonMobil from 2024 to 2026, where he directed all top-tier media engagements, crafted earnings scripts for the CFO, and helped launch a retail shareholder voting program. Prior to that, he spent six years as Supervisor of Corporate and Digital Communications at Aramco Americas, overseeing strategy for content creation, media relations, digital channels, and crisis communications. Earlier in his career, Wade was a Senior Vice President at Edelman, where he led the corporate affairs and energy practice in Houston, secured new business, and repositioned corporate narratives for major clients. Before moving into corporate communications, he spent twelve years as a journalist at Reuters News, serving as Bureau Chief, Senior Correspondent, and Correspondent in Houston, Lima, and São Paulo, covering energy, commodities, financial markets, politics, and economics. Wade holds degrees from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) and the University of California, Berkeley.

    Senior
    Advisor

    Terry Wade is a strategic communications advisor who helps energy companies navigate complex public affairs challenges, drawing on more than two decades of experience across media, communications, international affairs, and the energy sector.

    Based in Houston, TX, Wade is the founder of TLW Consulting. He is fluent in Spanish and Portuguese and has held senior leadership positions at some of the world’s largest energy, public relations, and media companies. He has extensive experience engaging corporate leaders, public officials, and top-tier journalists to manage reputation, mitigate risk, and craft narratives that resonate with diverse stakeholders. 

    Wade served as Global Head of Media Relations at ExxonMobil from 2024 to 2026, where he directed all top-tier media engagements, crafted earnings scripts for the CFO, and helped launch a retail shareholder voting program. Prior to that, he spent six years as Supervisor of Corporate and Digital Communications at Aramco Americas, overseeing strategy for content creation, media relations, digital channels, and crisis communications.

    Earlier in his career, Wade was a Senior Vice President at Edelman, where he led the corporate affairs and energy practice in Houston, secured new business, and repositioned corporate narratives for major clients. Before moving into corporate communications, he spent twelve years as a journalist at Reuters News, serving as Bureau Chief, Senior Correspondent, and Correspondent in Houston, Lima, and São Paulo, covering energy, commodities, financial markets, politics, and economics.

    Wade holds degrees from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) and the University of California, Berkeley.
  • Maureen Hansen

    Maureen Hansen

    With an extensive background in market research, strategy, and communications, Maureen is focused on designing and delivering innovative solutions for our clients. Maureen joined Breakwater with experience working for leading global corporations across Marketing, Strategy, and Business Intelligence. Over the course of her career, Maureen has been responsible for large scale, in-depth, global research projects, competitive intelligence, marketing and go-to-market strategies, and thought leadership execution. Through each of these focus areas, she has shaped both internal and external strategies, honing her ability to balance strategic development with operational execution. Maureen’s experience managing change and building strategies through mergers and acquisitions gives her a well-rounded perspective when analyzing issues, making recommendations, and developing solutions for clients. Maureen holds a B.S.B.A. in Finance from The Catholic University of America, as well as an M.B.A. in International Business and an M.S. in Accountancy from Saint Peter’s University. She sits on the board of a small, non-profit dog rescue and was selected to be on the floor of the New York Stock Exchange the day her previous company went public. Outside of work Maureen is an avid reader, puzzler, and traveler, spending as much time with her family and friends as possible. Expertise: Market Research & Competitive Intelligence Business Strategy Marketing Strategy and Communications Product Marketing and Development

    Vice
    President, Capital Markets

    maureen@breakwaterstrategy.com

    With an extensive background in market research, strategy, and communications, Maureen is focused on designing and delivering innovative solutions for our clients.

    Maureen joined Breakwater with experience working for leading global corporations across Marketing, Strategy, and Business Intelligence. Over the course of her career, Maureen has been responsible for large scale, in-depth, global research projects, competitive intelligence, marketing and go-to-market strategies, and thought leadership execution. Through each of these focus areas, she has shaped both internal and external strategies, honing her ability to balance strategic development with operational execution. Maureen’s experience managing change and building strategies through mergers and acquisitions gives her a well-rounded perspective when analyzing issues, making recommendations, and developing solutions for clients.

    Maureen holds a B.S.B.A. in Finance from The Catholic University of America, as well as an M.B.A. in International Business and an M.S. in Accountancy from Saint Peter’s University. She sits on the board of a small, non-profit dog rescue and was selected to be on the floor of the New York Stock Exchange the day her previous company went public. Outside of work Maureen is an avid reader, puzzler, and traveler, spending as much time with her family and friends as possible.

    Expertise:

    • Market Research & Competitive Intelligence
    • Business Strategy
    • Marketing Strategy and Communications
    • Product Marketing and Development
  • Mark Hayes

    Mark Hayes

    Mark is the Founding Partner of Breakwater Capital Markets, the capital markets advisory practice of Breakwater Strategy. He advises boards, CEOs, CFOs, and executive leadership teams on how investors assess enterprise value and how companies can shape that assessment through strategy, performance, capital allocation, investor engagement, and communications. Mark works with public companies, pre-IPO and venture-backed businesses, private equity sponsors, investment partnerships, and family offices on issues at the intersection of corporate strategy, valuation, investor relations, and market positioning. Across hundreds of domestic and international engagements, he has advised companies across the full market-capitalization spectrum—from emerging growth and small-cap issuers to global enterprises—on how to strengthen the link between business strategy, investor confidence, and enterprise value. He advises clients through IPO readiness, investor days, non-deal roadshows, strategic repositioning, leadership transitions, market volatility, transactions, activist and short-seller situations, and other moments of strategic inflection. In these contexts, he counsels boards and management teams sharpen the enterprise-value narrative, engage priority investors, and communicate with discipline in complex or high-stakes environments. Mark developed the Valuation Operating System™, Breakwater’s proprietary framework for helping companies understand, manage, and influence valuation. The framework integrates business strategy, operating performance, capital allocation, investor intelligence, and investor engagement and communications into a disciplined system for value creation. It gives boards and management teams a practical way to assess how valuation is formed, defended, and accelerated across the investor ecosystem, especially during periods of growth, transformation, transactions, market dislocation, and structural change. Mark’s perspectives on valuation formation, investor relations, and capital-market strategy have been published, presented, and shared through interviews, including with the Financial Times, and across major financial centers in North America, the United Kingdom, the European Union, the Middle East, Africa, Hong Kong, and Japan. He helps companies and investors interpret market dynamics, sharpen strategic narratives, and make decisions in complex or high-stakes situations. His expertise includes investor relations strategy and execution; investor intelligence; equity story development; valuation strategy; investor days and non-deal roadshows; transaction, strategic, and financial communications; capital-structure strategy, including private credit; and special-situation advisory, including activism, short-seller defense, hostile and friendly transactions, management transitions, and crisis environments. Before founding Breakwater Capital Markets, Mark served as Executive Vice President and Chief Client Officer of a global investor relations advisory firm, where he helped scale the business from an emerging platform into a recognized international advisory firm. He shaped the firm’s strategy, client model, and market positioning through a period of accelerated growth. Earlier in his career, he held senior leadership roles across strategy, finance, operations, technology, marketing, communications, sales, product development, and organizational design, including most recently within a Fortune 15 company, where he led initiatives that improved operating performance, P&L results, employee engagement, and innovation. Mark has been active in the nonprofit community for more than three decades. He served on the Board of the Hartford Symphony Orchestra, including as a member of the Executive Committee, Chair of the Governance Committee, and past Chair of the Finance and Development Committees. He is also a former Executive Board Member of the World Affairs Council of Connecticut and Juvenile Diabetes of Greater Hartford and has served as Campaign Chair for the oldest continuously operating food bank in the United States and for a best-in-class annual giving campaign for a Fortune 50 company. Expertise:  Capital Markets and Investor Relations  Investor Intelligence (Perception), Strategic, Transaction & Financial Investor Communications, Strategy & Reputation, Special Situations and Crisis Management,   Valuation Strategist & Architect  Investor Relations Strategy & Process Development and Execution  Sell-Side/Global Buy-Side/Retail Investors  Investor Days and Non-Deal Roadshows  Board, CEO & Management Team Advisory (Business Strategy & Operations)  Transformational Business Strategy & Breakthrough Innovation  Global Dynamics  All Sectors and Market Capitalizations 

    Partner,
    Head of Breakwater Capital Markets

    mark@breakwaterstrategy.com

    Mark is the Founding Partner of Breakwater Capital Markets, the capital markets advisory practice of Breakwater Strategy. He advises boards, CEOs, CFOs, and executive leadership teams on how investors assess enterprise value and how companies can shape that assessment through strategy, performance, capital allocation, investor engagement, and communications.
    Mark works with public companies, pre-IPO and venture-backed businesses, private equity sponsors, investment partnerships, and family offices on issues at the intersection of corporate strategy, valuation, investor relations, and market positioning. Across hundreds of domestic and international engagements, he has advised companies across the full market-capitalization spectrum—from emerging growth and small-cap issuers to global enterprises—on how to strengthen the link between business strategy, investor confidence, and enterprise value.
    He advises clients through IPO readiness, investor days, non-deal roadshows, strategic repositioning, leadership transitions, market volatility, transactions, activist and short-seller situations, and other moments of strategic inflection. In these contexts, he counsels boards and management teams sharpen the enterprise-value narrative, engage priority investors, and communicate with discipline in complex or high-stakes environments.
    Mark developed the Valuation Operating System™, Breakwater’s proprietary framework for helping companies understand, manage, and influence valuation. The framework integrates business strategy, operating performance, capital allocation, investor intelligence, and investor engagement and communications into a disciplined system for value creation. It gives boards and management teams a practical way to assess how valuation is formed, defended, and accelerated across the investor ecosystem, especially during periods of growth, transformation, transactions, market dislocation, and structural change.
    Mark’s perspectives on valuation formation, investor relations, and capital-market strategy have been published, presented, and shared through interviews, including with the Financial Times, and across major financial centers in North America, the United Kingdom, the European Union, the Middle East, Africa, Hong Kong, and Japan. He helps companies and investors interpret market dynamics, sharpen strategic narratives, and make decisions in complex or high-stakes situations.
    His expertise includes investor relations strategy and execution; investor intelligence; equity story development; valuation strategy; investor days and non-deal roadshows; transaction, strategic, and financial communications; capital-structure strategy, including private credit; and special-situation advisory, including activism, short-seller defense, hostile and friendly transactions, management transitions, and crisis environments.
    Before founding Breakwater Capital Markets, Mark served as Executive Vice President and Chief Client Officer of a global investor relations advisory firm, where he helped scale the business from an emerging platform into a recognized international advisory firm. He shaped the firm’s strategy, client model, and market positioning through a period of accelerated growth. Earlier in his career, he held senior leadership roles across strategy, finance, operations, technology, marketing, communications, sales, product development, and organizational design, including most recently within a Fortune 15 company, where he led initiatives that improved operating performance, P&L results, employee engagement, and innovation.

    Mark has been active in the nonprofit community for more than three decades. He served on the Board of the Hartford Symphony Orchestra, including as a member of the Executive Committee, Chair of the Governance Committee, and past Chair of the Finance and Development Committees. He is also a former Executive Board Member of the World Affairs Council of Connecticut and Juvenile Diabetes of Greater Hartford and has served as Campaign Chair for the oldest continuously operating food bank in the United States and for a best-in-class annual giving campaign for a Fortune 50 company.

    Expertise: 

    • Capital Markets and Investor Relations 
    • Investor Intelligence (Perception), Strategic, Transaction & Financial Investor Communications, Strategy & Reputation, Special Situations and Crisis Management,  
    • Valuation Strategist & Architect 
    • Investor Relations Strategy & Process Development and Execution 
    • Sell-Side/Global Buy-Side/Retail Investors 
    • Investor Days and Non-Deal Roadshows 
    • Board, CEO & Management Team Advisory (Business Strategy & Operations) 
    • Transformational Business Strategy & Breakthrough Innovation 
    • Global Dynamics 
    • All Sectors and Market Capitalizations 
  • Elayna Herrera

    Elayna Herrera

    Elayna Herrera is an Associate at Breakwater Strategy based in Washington D.C. Elayna utilizes her experience in corporate communications, research, and writing to support her teams and aid clients in achieving their goals. As an associate, her day-to-day includes media monitoring, research, administrative work, and crafting communication deliverables. Elayna graduated from the University of North Carolina-Chapel Hill with a degree in journalism and political science. During her time in college, Elayna was a campus tour guide where she leveraged her storytelling ability to attract prospective students from all over the country to come to Carolina. It served as a rewarding role that polished her communication skills and allowed her to build special connections with the individuals on her tours. If she wasn’t giving tours, Elayna was helping craft new packages for her school’s student-run broadcast, Carolina Week, while also contributing to her sorority's judicial and DEI committee. Before joining Breakwater in October 2025, Elayna held a variety of internship roles working across different industries, including energy and renewables, philanthropy, biotech, and higher education. As a corporate communications intern at Duke Energy, Elayna published two stories on Duke Energy’s Illumination site highlighting the company’s philanthropic contributions to the environment. She also worked as a consumer troubleshooter intern at ABC11, a newsroom in Raleigh, North Carolina, as well as a public affairs intern at SKDK, a public affairs and political consulting firm. Outside of work, Elayna enjoys running, trying new food, reading, and travelling. Her favorite international destination is Granada, Spain, a small town in the southern region of the country that offers delicious tapas and scenic architecture.

    Associate

    elayna@breakwaterstrategy.com

    Elayna Herrera is an Associate at Breakwater Strategy based in Washington D.C. Elayna utilizes her experience in corporate communications, research, and writing to support her teams and aid clients in achieving their goals. As an associate, her day-to-day includes media monitoring, research, administrative work, and crafting communication deliverables.

    Elayna graduated from the University of North Carolina-Chapel Hill with a degree in journalism and political science. During her time in college, Elayna was a campus tour guide where she leveraged her storytelling ability to attract prospective students from all over the country to come to Carolina. It served as a rewarding role that polished her communication skills and allowed her to build special connections with the individuals on her tours. If she wasn’t giving tours, Elayna was helping craft new packages for her school’s student-run broadcast, Carolina Week, while also contributing to her sorority’s judicial and DEI committee.

    Before joining Breakwater in October 2025, Elayna held a variety of internship roles working across different industries, including energy and renewables, philanthropy, biotech, and higher education. As a corporate communications intern at Duke Energy, Elayna published two stories on Duke Energy’s Illumination site highlighting the company’s philanthropic contributions to the environment. She also worked as a consumer troubleshooter intern at ABC11, a newsroom in Raleigh, North Carolina, as well as a public affairs intern at SKDK, a public affairs and political consulting firm.

    Outside of work, Elayna enjoys running, trying new food, reading, and travelling. Her favorite international destination is Granada, Spain, a small town in the southern region of the country that offers delicious tapas and scenic architecture.