Richard Edelman

Richard Edelman is the president and CEO of the world’s largest independent public relations firm with over 3,100 employees in 54 offices worldwide. Edelman was most recently named “PR Agency of the Year 2009” and “Large Agency of the Year 2009” by PRWeek for the third year in a row, “Agency A-List 2008” by Ad Age and “2007 Global Agency of the Year” by the Holmes Report. Edelman has been a leader in public relations since it was founded in 1952. Richard’s blog, 6 A.M., which launched in September 2004, receives more than 2,000 visitors a day.

Richard Edelman was named president and CEO in September 1996. Prior to that, he served as president of Edelman’s U.S. operations, regional manager of Europe and manager of the firm’s New York office. Richard has extensive experience in marketing and reputation management, with current assignments for Scotts Miracle Gro, McGraw Hill and HP. He has counseled several countries on economic development programs, including Egypt, Israel and Mexico.

Richard has special understanding of the non-governmental organization (NGO) movement. He has spoken on this topic at several conferences including The Institute of Social & Ethical AccountAbility, The Conference Board and the World Economic Forum’s Annual Meeting in Davos. Edelman’s research on NGOs in the Edelman Trust Barometer has been cited by several publications including The Financial Times and The Wall Street Journal.

Richard won the Silver Anvil, the highest award in the public relations industry, in 1981. He was named “Best Manager of the Year” by Inside PR magazine in 1995. In 2006, he was awarded “Entrepreneur of the Year 2006 – NY Metropolitan Area” by Ernst & Young. Richard was named the “Most Powerful PR Executive” by PR Week in October 2008, for the second year in a row, and “Agency Executive of the Year” by AdAge in January 2008.

He serves on the Board of Directors of the Ad Council, the Atlantic Council, the Gettysburg National Battlefield Foundation and the National Committee on U.S.-China Relations. He is also a member of the World Economic Forum, the Arthur Page Society and PR Seminar.

Richard was graduated from Phillips Exeter Academy in 1972. He has a Bachelor of Arts degree from Harvard College (1976) and an M.B.A. from Harvard Business School in 1978.