Brian Lesser
{{Short description|American businessman}}
{{Infobox person
| name = Brian D. Lesser
| birth_date = 1975
| nationality = American
| education = BA Political Science from the University of Pennsylvania (1996)
MBA from Columbia Business School (2004)
| occupation = businessman
| title = Xandr (CEO)
GroupM (CEO, 2015)
Xaxis (Founder, 2011)
24/7 Media (Vice President, 2006)
| father = Michael S. "Mike" Lesser
| awards = Executive of the Year (AdWeek, 2018)
Advertising Age “40 Under 40” list (2014)
}}
Brian D. Lesser is an American businessman who is the former CEO of Xandr and the incoming global CEO of GroupM, a WPP company.
Family and education
Born about 1975,{{cite web |url=http://adage.com/article/special-report-40-under-40/meet-ad-age-s-40-40/290948/#Lesser |title=Meet Ad Age's 40 Under 40 |date=2014-01-20 |work=Ad Age |publisher=Advertising Age |url-status=dead |archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20170704193119/http://adage.com/article/special-report-40-under-40/meet-ad-age-s-40-40/290948/#Lesser |archivedate=2017-07-04}} Lesser was introduced to the advertising industry at an early age by his father, Michael S. "Mike" Lesser, who was chairman and CEO of Lowe Marschalk (later Lowe & Partners Inc.),{{cite book| url=https://books.google.com/books?id=QpLtCQAAQBAJ&pg=PA1930 |last1=McDonough |first1=John | last2=Egolf| first2=Karen|title=The Advertising Age Encyclopedia of Advertising|publisher=Fitzroy Dearborn Publishers| year=2002 |page=1930 |isbn=1579581722}} then president of Ogilvy & Mather New York.{{cite web |url=https://adage.com/article/news/brian-lesser-dials-future-answer/314864 |last=Poggi | first=Jeanine |title=A HIGHER CALLING| date=2018-09-10 |work=Ad Age |publisher=Advertising Age| accessdate=2019-08-08}}{{cite web |url=https://www.campaignlive.com/article/q-a-new-ceo-brian-lesser-groupms-digital-reinvention/1371758 |last=Quenqua | first=Douglas |title=Q&A: New CEO Brian Lesser on GroupM's digital reinvention |date=2015-06-11 |work=CampaignLive | publisher=Haymarket Media Group Ltd. |accessdate=2019-08-08}}{{cite web |url=https://www.beet.tv/2015/08/mrxaxislesser.html|title=Xaxis' Lesser Followed The Paternal Path To Change Advertising |date=2015-08-28 |work=Beet.tv | publisher=Beet Media LLC |accessdate=2019-08-08}} Mike Lesser was also general manager of The November Group, the advertising arm of the Committee for the Re-Election of the President Richard Nixon, known in pop culture as C.R.E.E.P formed solely to create an ad campaign for the 1972 United States presidential election{{cite web |url=https://www.nytimes.com/1972/03/27/archives/nixons-the-one-at-new-shop.html |last=Dougherty | first=Philip H. |title=Advertising |date=1972-03-27 |work=The New York Times |accessdate=2019-08-08}}.
Brian Lesser received a BA in Political Science from the University of Pennsylvania in 1996, then earned an MBA from Columbia Business School in 2004.{{cn|date=December 2021}} He resides in New Jersey with his wife and three children.{{cite web |url=https://www.exchangewire.com/events/exchangewire-live-new-york-2/speakers/ |title=ExchangeWire Live in New York |date=2017-03-22 |work=Exchange Wire |accessdate=2019-08-08}}
Career
In 2006, Lesser was vice president of 24/7 Media, then senior vice president of the Media Innovation Group, LLC (known as “The MIG”).
In 2011, he founded Xaxis as a subsidiary of GroupM; he then became CEO of GroupM in November 2015,{{cite web| url=https://www.bloomberg.com/profile/person/17631053|title=Brian D Lesser| work=Bloomberg|access-date=August 8, 2019}} overseeing six media agencies.{{cite news |url=https://traffic.piano.io/2016/09/22/qa-groupms-brian-lesser/ |title=Q+A: GroupM's Brian Lesser |last=Oxfeld |first=Jesse |work=Traffic |date=September 22, 2016 |access-date=August 8, 2019}} As CEO from 2015-2017, WPP's business experienced a 2.3% decline on like-for-like business [https://www.wpp.com/-/media/project/wpp/files/news/2018/wpp-2017-preliminary-results.pdf
In October 2017, Lesser was recruited by former GroupM client AT&T{{cite web |url=https://adage.com/article/special-report-cannes-lions/brian-lesser-plans-actions-time-warner-deal/313924|title=AT&T'S BRIAN LESSER LAYS OUT HIS GRAND AD PLAN FOLLOWING THE TIME WARNER DEAL | last=Poggi|first=Jeanine|work=Ad Age|publisher=Advertising Age|date=June 15, 2018 |access-date=August 8, 2019}} as CEO of Advertising and Analytics.
In September 2018, Advertising and Analytics was renamed Xandr, a subsidiary of AT&T, and Lesser was appointed CEO.{{cite news| url=http://www.adnews.com.au/news/atandt-combines-appnexus-with-its-own-ad-businesses-to-form-xandr|title=AT&T combines AppNexus with its own ad businesses to form Xandr|work=Ad News| date=September 26, 2018|access-date=August 8, 2019}} Lesser resigned in 2020 after being informed he would not be appointed CEO of WarnerMedia, a position he had been considered for{{Cite web |title=Xandr has lost its CEO {{!}} Advertising |url=https://www.campaignasia.com/article/xandr-has-lost-its-ceo/458733 |access-date=2025-04-17 |website=Campaign Asia}}{{Cite web |title=Xandr CEO Brian Lesser quits |url=https://www.campaignlive.co.uk/article/xandr-ceo-brian-lesser-quits/1676876 |access-date=2025-04-17 |website=www.campaignlive.co.uk |language=en}}{{Cite web |last=Sluis |first=Sarah |date=2020-03-11 |title=Xandr CEO Brian Lesser Reportedly Resigns |url=https://www.adexchanger.com/platforms/xandr-ceo-brian-lesser-reportedly-resigns/ |access-date=2025-04-17 |website=AdExchanger |language=en-US}}.
During Lesser's tenure at AT&T's Xandr, InfoSum, a data clean room company, pitched and secured strategic investment from Xandr as part of its $15.1M Series A funding round which closed in September of 2020.
Three months later, in December 2020, Lesser stepped into the role of CEO and Chairman of InfoSum{{Cite web |title=Brian Lesser Takes CEO Role At Consumer Identity Startup |url=https://www.mediapost.com/publications/article/358505/None |access-date=2025-04-17 |website=www.mediapost.com |language=en}} which then raised another $65M in 2021. Though the firm's revenue, as of April 2025 was approximately $14.2M{{Cite web |date=2025-04-08 |title=InfoSum - 2025 Company Profile - Tracxn |url=https://tracxn.com/d/companies/infosum/__kHR0-5Z75DgyTIcpV8gHVi4w8alyQGsPZqqYrm9orp8 |access-date=2025-04-17 |website=tracxn.com |language=en}}, AdAge reported its 2021 valuation at $300M.
Lesser resigned as CEO and Chairman at InfoSum in July 2024 to become Global CEO at GroupM in September 2024. In 2025, it was announced that GroupM acquired InfoSum for $150M, and would then sit within GroupM, now led by Lesser.
In 2014, Lesser was named to the Ad Age's “40 Under 40” list and, in 2018, was recognized by AdWeek as "Executive of the Year".{{cite web|url=https://www.adweek.com/digital/2018s-digital-hot-list-the-movers-and-innovators-that-got-us-excited-this-year/| title=2018's Digital Hot List: The Movers and Innovators That Got Us Excited This Year |work=Ad Age| publisher=Advertising Age|date=October 14, 2018|access-date=August 8, 2019}}
See also
References
{{reflist}}
External links
- [https://www.cnbc.com/video/2018/06/20/atts-brian-lesser-on-the-future-of-advertising.html "AT&T's Brian Lesser on the future of advertising"]; CNBC; Cannes Lions International Festival of Creativity; June 20, 2018; Accessed August 9, 2019.
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Category:American telecommunications industry businesspeople
Category:American chief executives
Category:Businesspeople from New Jersey
Category:University of Pennsylvania alumni