Henry Mauriss is a Los Angeles-based media executive, entrepreneur, and philanthropist with over 25 years of experience in consumer marketing, media, and branding. As the CEO of ClearTV, he has transformed the out-of-home entertainment space by delivering diverse, engaging content to audiences across high-traffic locations like airports, hospitals, and transit hubs. ClearTV’s legacy partnerships include over 200 top-tier networks and is redefining how people consume media on the go.
In addition to his work in media, Henry is the founder of Joshua’s Collective (in formation), a nonprofit dedicated to addressing California’s homelessness crisis through a holistic and data-driven approach. Joshua’s Collective focuses on long-term rehabilitation, mental health care, job training, and community reintegration—delivering measurable outcomes while staying rooted in compassion and discipline. Henry’s approach combines business acumen with a deep sense of social responsibility, aiming to build systems that improve lives in real, lasting ways.
What does success look like to you now, compared to earlier in your life?
In my early years, success looked like growth—more deals, more expansion, more market share. It was about building something that stood out. I don’t regret that mindset; it shaped my career and helped me succeed in several early ventures, and to bring ClearTV to life. But over time, I started seeing success less in terms of numbers and more in terms of impact.
Today, success looks like watching someone rebuild their life through Joshua’s Collective. It’s knowing that we have the capability to not only reverse the annual growth in homeless counts, but to greatly diminish the overall homeless counts; first in California, and later, other parts of the country. That’s a different kind of victory. Business success is measurable in charts and reports. Human success? You see it in someone’s eyes when they realize they’re not alone anymore, and that someone finally found solutions that help beyond a shelter bed.
How do you balance results with compassion in your philanthropic work?
I believe you need both. Compassion without structure can be chaotic. Structure without compassion can be cold. At Joshua’s Collective, we’ll lead with heart, but we track everything. We measure how many people we help transition to permanent housing, how many find jobs, how many stay sober. It’s not about metrics for the sake of it—it’s about staying honest.
When you’re working with vulnerable populations, you can’t afford to rely on guesswork. They deserve our best thinking, not just our best intentions. So we’ve created a model that’s deeply human but also highly accountable. That’s how I’ve found balance.
What’s a hard lesson you’ve learned through your journey?
That good ideas aren’t enough. I’ve had projects that looked perfect on paper but fell apart because the execution wasn’t there—or the timing wasn’t right. Whether in business or philanthropy, you have to test, adapt, and be willing to admit when something’s not working.
With Joshua’s Collective, we had access to many years’ worth of data to help articulate what not to do, and identify the solutions that emerge from all the historical failure. We listened to people with lived experience. We adjusted our approach when needed. That humility has probably saved us from making a lot of avoidable mistakes, and very likely will help us remain focused on the importance of addressing the things that trigger homelessness, and there are many.
What’s something you’ve changed your mind about in the last ten years?
I used to think change had to come from the top down—from big institutions, government programs, or high-level leadership. Now, I believe most lasting change starts local. It starts with one organization, one person, one community deciding to do something differently.
We’ve watched small-scale interventions over the years in local churches, and then observed the sheer volume of institutional resources being thrown at the problem. The volume of resources are, in the aggregate, sufficient to solve the problem. But with so much of that money and effort being misspent, we ultimately felt that we had to develop an effort that would be self-financed, not rely on government administrations that are recalcitrant against directional change, and that would deploy resources with a mindset of investment rather than spend. At Joshua’s Collective, we’ll grow scalable systems that address the problems actually triggering homelessness, and sidestep today’s institutional mantra of “housing first”. That kind of change might not make headlines, but it’s powerful.
What inspires you to keep going through setbacks or challenges?
I think about the people who don’t have the option to give up. The folks we’ll serve through Joshua’s Collective can’t just take a break when life gets tough. They’ve been through worse than anything I’ve experienced in business. That perspective keeps me grounded.
Also, I believe in the long game. Real change doesn’t happen overnight. There are always roadblocks—funding issues, staffing problems, red tape—but I try to keep my focus on the larger mission. If we stay committed to doing the right thing the right way, the results will come.
What’s your definition of leadership today?
Leadership is about clarity and consistency. It’s about being the calmest person in the room when things go sideways. More importantly, it’s about building trust—through action, not talk.
In both ClearTV and Joshua’s Collective, my role isn’t to have all the answers. It’s to create an environment where smart, passionate people can do great work. If I can remove obstacles, keep us focused on the mission, and make sure we’re always learning, then I’m doing my job.
What advice would you give someone just starting out—whether in business or nonprofit work?
Start small and stay focused. Too many people try to launch with scale in mind when they haven’t proven their concept yet. Build a strong foundation. Test your idea. Be willing to pivot. And most of all, know why you’re doing it.
If you’re in it for quick wins, you’ll burn out fast. But if you’re connected to the mission—whether that’s solving a customer problem or helping people heal—you’ll find the energy to keep going.
Final thoughts—what does success look like to you today?
Success is doing work that matters, with people you respect, in a way that makes a difference. It’s building systems that don’t just make money, but make lives better. And if, at the end of the day, someone’s world is a little more stable because of something we built—that’s a win I’ll never stop chasing.
