Center For Risk Communication

What Center For Risk Communication does

The Center For Risk Communication is a privately held professional services firm, founded around 1983 and headquartered in New York City, with a secondary mailing address in Stevensville, Maryland and a Canadian presence via centerforriskcommunication.ca. The firm provides science-based consulting, training, and research services focused on risk, crisis, and high-concern communication. Its client base is enterprise and government, with named past engagements including 3M, Procter & Gamble, DuPont, Nestle, U.S. Army, NAVSUP, Bechtel, South Central, Petro-Canada, and Tropicana.

The firm's core intellectual property is a copyrighted Communication Process Methodology and associated Message Map Development framework, grounded in more than forty years of behavioral-science research conducted by founder Dr. Vincent Covello (150+ journal articles, 20+ books) and the firm's senior fellows. Its service portfolio spans Training & Workshops, Perception & Opinion Research, Community Relations Strategy Development, Community Outreach Program Development, Stakeholder Participation Planning, Media Relations Strategy, Message Map Development, Spokesperson Training, and Risk Communication Planning. A packaged video course, Pathway to Risk Communication, is offered via a separate domain and represents a productized extension of the firm's methodology.

The business model is professional services: project-based consulting and training engagements, quote-based pricing tailored to client scope, and multi-year contracts in which senior consultants are committed for the duration of an engagement. The firm appears to operate with a small full-time core (stated 1-10 employees) supplemented by roughly a dozen named senior fellows and associates, with revenue anchored by senior-consultant billable hours on enterprise and government contracts. Distribution is reputation-led rather than channel-driven, relying on the founder's published authority and prior Fortune-500 and government engagements to generate inbound demand.

Name

Center For Risk Communication

Legal name

The Center for Risk Communication

Website

https://centerforriskcommunication.org

Company type

Private

Founded year

1983

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

1–10 employees

Short description

The Center For Risk Communication is a privately held professional services firm providing science-based consulting, training, and research in risk, crisis, and high-concern communication. It serves enterprise and government clients globally using a copyrighted methodology developed from forty-plus years of behavioral-science research.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Risk and Crisis Communication Consulting

NAICS

Management Consulting Services (54161), Advertising, Public Relations, and Related Services (5418), Management, Scientific, and Technical Consulting Services (5416)

SIC

Services-Management Consulting Services (8742)

akta.pro primary industry

Crisis Communications Planning & Response (MPAAAOAD)

akta.pro secondary industries

Crisis Communications & Issues Management (MPAAADAF), Risk Management (Enterprise, Operational, Model) (EDABAJAF), Public Health Communications, Risk Communication & Community Engagement (HLAJAMAH), Risk, Compliance & Internal Controls Consulting (BPAHACAJ)

Keywords

• Risk communication consulting
• Crisis communication training
• High-concern communication
• Stakeholder engagement strategy
• Perception and opinion research

Headquarters

HQ city

New York

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Offices2 records

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Marketing or Sales, Technology or R&D

Revenue model

1. Professional Consulting Services: Senior consultants provide expert guidance and strategic counsel tailored to unique client needs and situations. Services include communication strategy development, crisis communication planning, and ongoing advisory support.
2. Training and Workshops: Comprehensive training programs in evidence-based and research-backed communication strategies. Training seminars and workshops are provided to build critical communication skills for high concern environments.
3. Perception and Opinion Research: Quantitative research services as part of the applied science process to understand stakeholder concerns and facilitate informed support of client initiatives.
4. Community Relations and Outreach Programs: Development of community relations strategies and outreach programs using appropriate modern media channels to effectively connect with stakeholders.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels2 records

Marketing channels5 records

Core offering

The Center for Risk Communication provides science-based consulting, training, and research services in risk, crisis, and high-concern communication. Senior consultants work directly with organizational leadership, communication officers, and media agencies to assess, guide, train, and develop tailored communication strategies. Core offerings include training and workshops, perception and opinion research, community relations strategy and outreach, stakeholder participation planning, media relations strategy, message map development, spokesperson training, and risk communication planning, complemented by the Pathway to Risk Communication video-based course.

Product overview

The Center for Risk Communication offers a portfolio of consulting services centered on science-based risk, crisis, and high-concern communication. The core offerings include Training & Workshops, Perception & Opinion Research, Community Relations Strategy Development, Community Outreach Program Development, Stakeholder Participation Planning, Media Relations Strategy, Message Map Development, Spokesperson Training, and Risk Communication Planning. These services are complemented by the Pathway to Risk Communication video-based course and several published research works including the Determinants of Trust and Credibility study, organizational change communication guides, and the COVID-19 Simple Answers publication. The company is led by Dr. Vincent Covello and operates as a consulting and training organization with over 40 years of experience serving corporate, government, and other organizations.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Training and Workshops Science-based coaching and training programs for leadership on risk, crisis, and high-concern communication skills, including verbal and non-verbal communication, trust building, and media spokesperson preparation. Delivered to corporate and government clients.
• Perception and Opinion Research Quantitative research services to identify and understand stakeholder concerns, detect resistance, and facilitate informed support of client initiatives through science-based methodology.
• Community Relations Strategy Development Development of effective community relations strategies to meet tough communication challenges during adverse climates or major disruptions.
• Community Outreach Program Development Development of community outreach programs using appropriate modern media channels to effectively connect with stakeholders and foster trust and credibility.
• Stakeholder Participation Planning Planning services that involve stakeholders in the process to achieve trust and credibility and gain informed support for organizational changes.
• Media Relations Strategy Research-based strategy development to manage media communications during high stress situations, addressing the power of negative messages and developing positive messaging replacement strategies.
• Message Map Development Computer-based tool for achieving message clarity and conciseness through hierarchically organized responses to anticipated high concern issues, serving as visual aids and roadmaps.
• Spokesperson Training Training for organization spokespersons on trust-building communication techniques, message delivery, response and mannerism evaluation, and preparation for media interactions.
• Risk Communication Planning Strategic planning services to prevent or mitigate negative consequences of high stress situations while maintaining organizational credibility, including crisis communication planning and scenario preparation.
• Pathway to Risk Communication Video-based course on risk, crisis, and high-concern communication developed by Dr. Vincent Covello, distributed online via pathwaycommunication.com.

Quantifiable outcome

• People in a stressed state lose up to 80% of their capacity to process information; Risk Communication principles help optimize the remaining 20% capacity
• +1 more outcomes

Named customers10 records

Segments3 records

Ideal customer profiles3 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Feature3 records

Partnerships

One partnership is on record.

• Arthur W. Page Center at Pennsylvania State UniversityminorStrategic or Co-development Partner · 11 August 2026The Arthur W. Page Center at Penn State issued a call for research proposals on the relationship between integrity and crisis communication. This initiative is part of the Page/Johnson Legacy Scholar Grant program, led by senior research fellows Tim Coombs and Yan Jin. Dr. Vincent Covello of the Center for Risk Communication is associated with this research initiative exploring how organizational integrity influences stakeholder reactions during crises and strategies for rebuilding trust.

Scale indicators4 records

Recent moves4 records

Expansion highlights4 records

Broad incumbents

• Burson (formerly Burson Cohn & Wolfe): Major global public relations and communications firm with a dedicated crisis, issues, and risk advisory practice. Competes for enterprise crisis mandates and offers similar issues-management and stakeholder communications services.
• Weber Shandwick: Global public relations firm with a crisis and reputation risk practice serving multinational clients. Comparable in addressing perception management, stakeholder communications, and high-concern messaging.
• Hill+Knowlton: Established global public relations firm with a longstanding crisis and issues management practice. Overlaps in providing research-based crisis communications strategy to enterprises and governments.
• FleishmanHillard: Global PR and integrated communications agency with a strong crisis and reputation management practice. Serves Fortune 500 clients across sectors that overlap with the Center's enterprise segment.
• Edelman: Global communications marketing firm with a substantial crisis and risk practice serving large enterprise and government clients. Overlaps with the Center in crisis communications consulting but at significantly broader scale and scope.
• Brunswick Group: Specialized critical-communications advisory firm focused on financial, corporate, and crisis situations. Directly comparable in the high-stakes corporate crisis advisory space the Center serves.

Emerging players

• IAPW (Institute for Crisis and Risk Communication): Academic-adjacent advisory group focused on applied crisis and risk communication research and training. Comparable through shared emphasis on science-based methodology and government/enterprise training engagements.

Direct peers

• Levick Strategic Communications: Crisis and litigation communications firm serving corporations, governments, and individuals during high-stakes events. Directly comparable in delivering science-informed messaging strategies during crisis and high-concern situations.
• Sitrick Group: Specialist crisis communications and public relations firm focused exclusively on high-stakes situations for corporations, executives, and public entities. Closest direct competitor in terms of specialization and boutique positioning.
• Resilience Media (formerly The PR Consulting Group): Specialized crisis communications firm offering24/7 crisis response, media training, and issues management for organizations. Closely comparable boutique-style crisis and risk communications services.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat4 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/center-for-risk-communication

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles7 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about Center For Risk Communication