Chris Hirst

Chris Hirst is the former CEO of Havas and WWP and a specialist keynote speaker on the power of great leadership who has gained fame as the author of the best-selling book ‘No Bullsh*t Leadership’. Having over a decade of experience in CEO positions, Chris has worked with some of the world’s biggest businesses and brands and has guided them to record levels of growth and cultural change for the better. When hired as a speaker, Chris is able to deliver engaging and informative talks on how great leadership has the power to transform your business.

Chris graduated from the University of Oxford in Engineering Science however, wanting to take his career in a different direction, he became the Acting Director of Bartle Bogle Hegarty before then becoming the Client Services Director for Fallon London. During his time as Managing Director of Grey London, Chris then completed an Advanced Management Programme from Harvard Business School. In 2010 Chris then became the CEO for the company and over the course of 10 years he transformed the company into one of the UK’s most sought-after advertising agencies, creating campaigns for the likes of HSBC, McVities, Vodafone and the British Heart Foundation. Under Chris’ masterful leadership, Grey London and became D&AD’s most awarded agency in the UK and ADWEEK’s global agency of the year.

During his time with Havas as the CEO and Chairman, Chris was able to integrate the creative and media aspects of the business, making it the most talked about up-and-coming communications business in London. Now, Chris is a member and contributor for Forbes Agency Council and the Founder of Dogsbody Group Ltd, a leadership consultancy firm. Chris is also a monthly columnist for Management Today, and commentator in press and broadcast media for Sky News, BBC TV, The Daily Mail, BBC Radio 5Live and the Financial Times to name a few. He is devoted to sharing his expertise on a wide variety of platforms to increase his reach and help many with their businesses and leadership skills. Chris’ book was named UK Business Book of the Year 2020 and was a number 1 best-seller for over 36 months; in which, he gives a simple, yet effective, step-by-step manual on how to lead. A true testament to Chris’ proven methods to make a great leader, he was short-listed as CEO of the Year 2022.

During his time as a CEO for WPP, he was able to triple the agency in size and quadrupled its profit. With Havas, Chris was able to lead more than 10,000 people across all of the companies’ local territories and transformed the previously unsuccessful business to take second place in Campaign Magazine’s global rankings in just three years. With numbers and a reputation that does not lie, Chris has cemented his name as the leading business advisor of today. Able to draw on his own experience of transforming businesses, if you are in need of an experienced keynote speaker to create a culture indicative of success, and want to learn how to become a great leader, look no further than Chris Hirst to hire at your next event.