Michele A. Davis, a prominent Washington insider, has been named to run the corporate communications department at Morgan Stanley.
Ms. Davis, a partner at public relations firm Brunswick Group, played a major role in the government’s response to the financial crisis, advising then Treasury Secretary Henry M. Paulson Jr. among others on their communication strategy. She also counseled BP the wake of its 2010 oil spill that wreaked havoc on the Gulf Coast.
“Michele has worked at the nexus of political and financial media throughout her career, serving in a number of senior communications positions in the U.S. Treasury Department, Fannie Mae, and the White House from 2001 to January 2009,†Morgan Stanley’s chief executive, James Gorman, and the firm’s vice chairman, Tom Nides, wrote in a memo to staff sent on Monday morning.
The recruitment of Ms. Davis is a big hire for Morgan Stanley, which has been without a permanent global head of corporate affairs for several months since Jeanmarie McFadden left in February. Ms. Davis has been in talks with Morgan Stanley for weeks, according to people briefed on the matter but not authorized to speak on the record. It is unclear exactly what duties Ms. Davis will have at Morgan Stanley but Ms. McFadden oversaw media relations, marketing and community affairs. Ms. McFadden was also a member of the firm’s management committee. Ms. Davis will report to Mr. Nides, according to the internal memo.
Ms. Davis currently lives in Washington and is expected to split her time between New York City and the Capitol, these people said.
Ms. Davis was a character in the HBO movie “Too Big to Fail,†which chronicled the events that led up the financial crisis. Her part was played by Cynthia Nixon.
