It’s a safe bet that Dansby Evans is one of the few communications consultants in America who has earned a PhD studying the 14^th-century poetry of Geoffrey Chaucer. But what truly sets Dansby apart is that he can tell you why that experience is directly relevant today in corporate America, which often seems to get lost in its own unique language.

"So many of the problems that people, organizations and even nations face are the result of poor communication," Dansby said. "I love helping clients communicate clearly and credibly, so that audiences both understand and believe what they’re hearing. Chaucer wrote that ‘the word must be cousin to the deed,’ and that’s still true today."

Dansby, who joined ROI Communication in 2010, has been a communications consultant for more than a decade, working with Fortune 500 clients to develop integrated communication strategies, build effective public relations campaigns, create online communication and marketing plans, and establish strong employee communication programs.

Dansby began his consulting career in New York, as an account executive at Golin/Harris International, the global public relations firm. Next, he served as a strategist at the Harvest Consulting Group, an online communications and marketing consultancy, where he developed integrated marketing communication plans, web content, direct mail and collateral for clients that included American Express, Citibank, Fiduciary Trust Company International and First Union, among others. Later, he spent eight years with the organizational change firm Oliver Wyman-Delta, where he helped facilitate change at clients such as Atlantic Philanthropies, Bristol-Myers Squibb, Discovery Communications, Marsh & McClennan Companies; Pacific Gas & Electric, Sutter Health, the University of California and United Airlines.

Reflecting on his work across such a wide range of clients, Dansby notes that effective communication doesn’t just solve problems, it prevents many of them from materializing in the first place. "You see over and over in literature and in business how conflict and tension spring from misunderstanding.  It’s so important to deliver clear messages and ensure that people understand them."

Dansby recently spent a week hiking Peru’s Inca Trail, where sandaled runners once rushed Quipu – messages recorded in knotted string – across a mighty empire. Back in the corporate world, Dansby helps companies untie knots to keep their own communication networks running.