Ben Legg

Ben Legg is a successful author, entrepreneur, and the former COO of Google Europe. As an expert in AI, the future of work, advertising, and emerging business models, Ben helps CEOs and investors navigate rapidly changing technology, work, and geopolitics through his role as CEO of The Portfolio Collective. He is also the Founder & CEO of Digital People International, where he helps entrepreneurs and investors understand and reinvent themselves, their teams, and their industries.

Beginning his career in the British Army, Ben was instrumental in ending the Siege of Sarajevo in 1995. An engineer by training, upon leaving the army he became a Strategy Consultant at McKinsey & Company, leading organisational and marketing initiatives. Joining Coca-Cola in 2002, he rose to become Commercial Director of Coca-Cola Poland, then VP of Sales for Hindustan Coca-Cola, where he delivered a major turnaround from -$100m to +$27m in one year. His performance in India piqued the interest of Google, which appointed him COO of Google Europe. In that role, he wrote the blueprint for Google’s monetisation strategy across Search, YouTube, Maps, and Mobile – a model still used by Google and its competitors today.

Ben was then the COO of European Directories before becoming Group CEO of Adknowledge and later CEO of AdParlor. Following this, he served in directorial roles at Ola and as a mentor at the Oxford Foundry. Since 2010, Ben has led various global technology businesses, collaborating and competing with many of Silicon Valley’s leading companies. He has acted as a keynote speaker with Digital People International since 2018 and co-founded The Portfolio Collective in 2020.

As a recognised name on Wall Street, Ben has been a Board Member of Mrs Wordsmith, Yoxly, The Webinar Vet, and currently serves on the boards of Goodsted, GFR Fund, Optimi Health, Judge.me, GALLOS, Hypervolt, and MoneyPlus. In 2016, he published Marketing for CEOs: Death or Glory in the Digital Age, which earned wide acclaim. He avidly supports Oxford University’s entrepreneurial ecosystem and has advised hundreds of CEOs, boards, government ministers, and executives worldwide. He has been interviewed by BBC, NBC, Bloomberg, The Wall Street Journal, and The Times.

Ben has delivered talks at leading global events such as AdTech, Chief Disruptor, Future Car, The Future of Work Conference, and the Cannes Lions Festival of Creativity. Ben has also spoken for major organisations including Google, Coca-Cola, King Games, McKinsey, and Samsung. Ben inspires audiences with insights on e-commerce, customer lifetime value, and people-based marketing. He is available for keynotes, executive offsites, strategy days, panels, and webinars.