ABOUT BRIAN

Brian Treece has more than thirty years of experience as a trusted advisor and strategic consultant to more than 60 clients at the state and federal level. He has worked on scores of issues including healthcare, energy & environment, law enforcement, technology, education, and economic development issues with extensive relationships with stakeholders at the local, state, and federal level including U.S. Senate, Members of Congress, Governors and senior administration officials.

Treece helps clients navigate complex political, legal, and communications crises where strategic issue management is critical. His experiences range from multi-state government relation challenges to community relations. Treece is a frequent lecturer and spokesperson on industry issues, advocacy, and political analysis.

Brian Treece has developed a unique niche in the public affairs arena by designing and delivering creative, bi-partisan strategies that sell products and ideas and create positive impressions in government and media. Clients rely on him as a spokesperson and media advisor.

His public service includes 6 years as the elected Mayor of Missouri’s 4th largest city with a $455 million annual budget, 1500 employees, and full-service municipal operations including airport, rail, water treatment and distribution, wastewater treatment, energy/renewables generation, transmission, and distribution, refuse collection and landfill utilities. As Mayor, Treece secured $500 million in public infrastructure improvements and led economic development efforts to create over 1,200 new jobs with a capital investment of over $326 million.

Brian Treece is a graduate of the University of Missouri-Columbia where he studied political science and journalism. With more than 30 years of experience in public relations and communications, Treece has conducted over 2,300 interviews amid intense media environment.

ABOUT MARY

Mary Phillips is a co-founder and managing partner of TreecePhillips Public Affairs. Serving as strategic counsel to clients in the utility, transportation, telecommunication, public safety and healthcare industries, she designs winning public affairs campaigns, helps clients navigate complex regulatory environments, identifies new business opportunities and advances organizational priorities. Phillips also trains executives in media response techniques, develops crisis communication strategies and crafts corporate messages for highly regulated and consumer-sensitive industries.

From 1997-2000, Phillips was the executive director of a large healthcare agency delivering services to more than 1000 clients in Missouri. Phillips successfully advanced the interests of this complex and highly regulated agency, directed the operations of eight satellite offices and the activities of two hundred employees. The former head of the Division of Aging monitoring unit overseeing Missouri’s Medicaid and SSBG Block Grants wrote of her work: “Ms. Phillips possesses and has demonstrated to me countless times, leadership perfection, business acumen of the highest order, personal integrity that we should all wish for and absolute effectiveness in the world of business and health care. I must add that her people skills are unsurpassed because she is truly a remarkable individual.”

Prior to 1997, Mary Phillips was president of Phillips Consulting, an organizational consulting firm. Clients of Phillips Consulting included the Missouri Department of Health, contractors with the Missouri Department of Social Services and non-profit organizations. Phillips also served as Springfield, Missouri’s representative to its sister city of Isesaki, Japan. In Japan, Phillips was a commissioned city official responsible for official appearances and protocols, educational presentations, and promotion of international relations.

Phillips received her Master of Public Administration degree from the University of Missouri-Columbia. Her undergraduate career includes graduating with honors with a Bachelor of Arts degree in International Relations from Missouri State University. The granddaughter of an original cast member of the popular Our Gang comedies, Phillips received multiple academic scholarships including one from the Screen Actors Guild (SAG). In 2022, Phillips was honored to receive the Distinguished Alumni Service Award from the University of Missouri-Columbia’s College of Art and Science.

Phillips serves as an international election monitor for the U.S. Department of State and the Organization for Security and Co-operation in Europe (OSCE), the world’s largest security organization. Her most recent deployments were to the 2024 Presidential election in Azerbaijan and the 2024 Parliamentary election in the Republic of Georgia.

Mary Phillips also serves as an international Site Visitor for the Network of Schools of Public Policy, Affairs, and Administration where she gathers and presents evidence as part of the rigorous NASPAA accreditation process. NASPAA Standards form the quality benchmark used by graduate public service programs around the world.

Phillips has served on the Boards of Directors of several not-for-profit organizations including: Chair of the Advisory Council of the Harry S Truman School of Government and Public Affairs at the University of Missouri-Columbia, Jefferson City Chamber of Commerce, United Way of Mid-Missouri Board of Governors, RiverCity Habitat for Humanity, Missouri Council for In-Home Services, Missouri Symphony Society, Greater Missouri Leadership Foundation and the University of Missouri-Columbia Chancellor’s Residence Preservation Society. Phillips also served as an officer of the Missouri Parks Association, the Jefferson City Community Concert Association and the United Way of Mid-Missouri Agency Leadership Council.

Phillips’ tenure on for-profit Boards of Directors includes a significant Workers’ Compensation Trust and as a founding Director of a large Workers’ Compensation Risk Management Association.