Jim O’Leary is set to join Penta as Chief Executive Officer, marking a leadership transition at the intelligence and advisory firm.O’Leary currently serves as North America CEO and global president at Weber Shandwick. He joined the firm in 2023 and led its North America operations, including the launch of Weber Advisory, the agency’s corporate affairs unit. He also oversaw AI-related transformation initiatives during his tenure.Before joining Weber Shandwick, O’Leary held senior leadership roles at Edelman, where he served as global corporate affairs chair and US COO.At Penta, O’Leary will succeed Matt McDonald, who will move to the company’s board and continue working with its leadership team. O’Leary is expected to remain with Weber Shandwick until the summer.The appointment comes as Penta continues expanding its advisory model focused on communications counsel, AI, data analytics and geopolitical intelligence. The company received investment from Shamrock Capital in 2025 to support its growth plans.Penta said its platform processes more than 25 million daily signals across over 100 languages to help clients monitor policy, reputational and stakeholder issues in real time.Headquartered in Washington, Penta operates offices in New York, London, Brussels, Dublin, Singapore, San Francisco and Hong Kong. The firm was launched in 2022 through the merger of six strategy, analytics, research and intelligence companies.