The public relations pro who helped WeWork and Uber CEOs through major PR disasters just got a big job at his old company
- Public relations powerhouse Jimmy Asci is back at CEO advisory firm Teneo after stepping away to help lead WeWork through its initial public offering and subsequent PR fiasco.
- Asci also represented Travis Kalanick when the former Uber CEO was ousted from that role in 2017 and has counseled several CEOs of Fortune 500 companies at Teneo.
- Asci returned to Teneo in early February as senior managing director after a six-month hiatus.
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Jimmy Asci, the public relations pro who worked with Uber and WeWork executives through crises, is back at CEO advisory firm Teneo in a major role.
Asci rejoined Teneo as senior managing director, the same position he vacated in April 2019 when he took a job as WeWork's head of global communications, shortly before the co-working-space startup publicly filed for its IPO in August.
Amid the turmoil that followed WeWork's IPO, including former CEO and cofounder Adam Neumann stepping down after leading the company since its launch in 2010, Asci was promoted to chief communications officer, but resigned in mid-October. Asci took a few months off, then returned to Teneo in early February.
At WeWork, Asci, who wouldn't comment for this story, worked closely with Neumann and other senior leaders to prepare the company for its IPO. Asci supervised external, internal, financial, and consumer communications at WeWork, Teneo said in its Feb. 3 announcement of Asci's recent rehiring, and often advised WeWork's management and board of directors on reputation management.
Asci developed a reputation as the PR expert of choice for tech CEOs with reputations at stake. Before helping Neumann, Asci represented Travis Kalanick, who hired Teneo in 2017 to rehabilitate his personal image after Uber's shareholders forced him to step down as Uber's CEO. Asci had recently been promoted to senior managing director at Teneo from managing director and SVP.
Asci also worked with several of Teneo's Fortune 500 CEO clients during his previous four-year tenure there, advising them on corporate communications, investor relations, and media relations. He was also a counselor in Teneo's crisis communications practice, the company said.
