Gail Heimann
Chief Executive Officer
Gail’s Story
Gail Heimann is Chief Executive Officer of Weber Shandwick and oversees The Weber Shandwick Collective (TWSC), the leading earned-first network – a strategic communications and consulting powerhouse built for “the era of earned”.
TWSC is fueled by a breadth and depth of sector and service expertise across 11 brands with offices in 6 continents. Its wide range of proficiency spans from organizational transformation to public affairs to digital transformation. Gail is dedicated to continuing to build a global organization differentiated by the power of its specialist expertise, its commitment and willingness to innovate and its culture of collaboration.
As CEO, Gail elevates and accelerates the kind of big picture, convention-breaking thinking that drives action – love, loyalty, awe, advocacy – and earns enduring change. At her core, she’s an idea maker and future shaper with a relentless drive to discover the new and the next. Throughout her storied career, Gail has helped to build brands and burnish reputations for a significant percentage of the Fortune 500 and has worked on iconic brands and campaigns across every sector.
Gail was a catalyst in Weber Shandwick being named as the only PR agency to the prestigious Ad Age Agency A-List in 2014, 2015, 2020 and 2024, and featured as an A-List “Standout” Agency in 2017 and 2018. Ad Age also named Weber Shandwick to its Best Places to Work list in 2019. Weber Shandwick was also honored as PRWeek’s Global Agency of the Year in 2024 and for four years in a row (2015 to 2018). Additional accolades include being named to Fast Company’s Most Innovative Companies list (2024), PRWeek’s Purpose Agency of the Year in 2020 and 2021, PRovoke‘s Global Agency of the Year in 2015, 2017 and 2019 – and PRovoke Global Agency of the Decade in 2020.
Under Gail’s leadership, Weber Shandwick has won 225+ Cannes Lions in partnership with leading brands around the world. Gail has served on five juries at the Cannes Lions International Festival of Creativity: President of the Public Relations jury in 2012; a member of the inaugural jury for the Glass Lions, which celebrate work that breaks through gender bias and stereotypes, in 2014; a member of the Cannes Lions Titanium jury in 2018 and a member of the Young Lions jury in 2022.
In 2020, Gail was named the PR Agency Head winner in Campaign’s inaugural U.S. Agency of the Year awards. In 2019, she was honored twice by PRWeek as US Agency Professional of the Year and Global Agency Professional of the Year. In 2016, she was inducted into PRWeek’s inaugural Hall of Femme (now Women of Distinction), recognizing female trailblazers in communications. And in 2015, Gail was named to PRovoke’s North America Innovator 25 list, which celebrates individuals who accelerate innovation and push boundaries within the public relations industry. Earlier in her career, Gail was named an Ad Age Woman to Watch.
Gail sits on the Board of Directors for the Susan G. Komen organization, The LAGRANT Foundation and Ad Council.
Gail and her husband have two daughters and live in New York City.
