IAB UK Leadership Summit 2026

UK digital advertising is growing fast, but growth brings responsibility. To open Leadership Summit 2026, Jon argues that outrage, proxy metrics and fragmentation are weakening, not strengthening, our industry. With AI accelerating change, we have a clear choice: shift to outcomes, rebuild trust and act collectively – or risk being reshaped by unintended consequences and forces beyond our control.

As AI transforms our day to day working realities, reshaping what we mean by knowledge and wisdom, and rewiring the labour market, are our models of leadership changing fast enough to catch up? Drawing on leadership science and organisational theory, this session explores practical examples of best practise and everyday inspiration. 

Jeff Youssef, Partner at Oliver Wyman, shares a high-impact view of how AI is reshaping the media economy. Drawing on global executive and investor insight, he will explore where growth is shifting, how consolidation and new entrants are redefining competition, and which business models are emerging as winners and losers.

We are proud to bring back our popular series of short, impactful talks titled 'Leading with'. These 5-minute sessions feature senior leaders sharing their lived experiences of navigating leadership while managing specific challenges, perspectives and conditions. In this session, hear from a senior leader who is autistic, and gain insight into how different ways of thinking, processing and communicating can shape exceptional leadership. From clarity of focus and deep expertise, to structured thinking and innovation, discover how embracing neurodiversity can strengthen teams, challenge assumptions and create more inclusive workplaces.

As part of our returning 'Leading with' series, this short, impactful talk explores leadership through the lens of lived experience. In this session, hear from a leader with a visible difference, as they share how navigating perception, confidence and bias has influenced their leadership style. Learn how authenticity, resilience and redefining expectations can become powerful tools for impact, and why representation and visibility at senior levels truly matter.

Whose happiness matters more: senior leaders or junior employees?
Matt Phelan, Co-Founder, The Happiness Index

Shaping the Future of Effectiveness: why measurement needs a reset
Elizabeth Lane, Head of Insight, IAB UK

Rock your LinkedIn
Jennifer Shaw-Sweet, Global Practice Lead, The B2B Institute, LinkedIn

An overview of The Coca-Cola Company's digital and marketing transformation over the past three years, exploring how the organisation has evolved it's strategy, structure and capabilities.

What’s really driving the headlines, and what is it that politicians and world leaders aren't saying (yet)? In this candid discussion, three leading journalists unpack the forces shaping the UK and the wider world. From party strategy and policy priorities to international flashpoints and shifting global alliances, they’ll share insights and predictions for the months ahead.

Join Sean Bedford, Distinguished Business Engineer and Sharon Dhillon to hear first hand how AI is transforming the advertising landscape as we know it. They’ll explore what's working vs. what’s proving difficult, the real-world tradeoffs and challenges teams are navigating, and perspectives on how AI will change talent, skills, and ways of working in the years ahead.

Jim Waterson had his dream job as media editor of the Guardian, reporting on what information people were consuming - and why. Then, prompted by a change in the way he saw people consuming news, he quit to found a local news start-up. Now he runs London Centric, a profitable and rapidly-growing outlet which has thousands of paying subscribers and specialises in tricky investigations. 

Our "Leading With' series returns with honest, human reflections from leaders whose experiences have shaped the way they show up at work. In this session, hear from a leader who has navigated significant bereavement while in a senior role. They will share how loss can profoundly shift perspective, priorities and leadership style - and how vulnerability, compassion and humanity can strengthen teams during life's most difficult moments.

The coming year promises to be a period of uncertainty, as Donald Trump’s reshaping of long-standing norms in geopolitics, diplomacy and trade continues to cause worldwide repercussions—and keeps the president in the global spotlight as the United States celebrates its 250th anniversary and co-hosts the football World Cup. As the drift and decay of the old rules-based global order continues, existing conflicts will grind on around the world, and new ones will flare up. Concern will grow over trade wars, economic stagnation, fiscal incontinence and AI’s impact on jobs, presenting both challenges and opportunities to countries, companies and citizens in the coming year. In this session Tom Standage, deputy editor of The Economist and editor of its future-gazing annual, The World Ahead, will outline his ten global trends to watch in 2026, analyse what is going on, and consider where things might be going next.

Start the day with optimal morning movement designed to boost clarity and energy. Choose between a guided group run or a restorative yoga session.

SUMS founder Ed Vickers joins us for a sharp, honest conversation about building a brand that puts purpose, community and long-term loyalty ahead of quick wins. In a market where many brands default to paid media and short-term efficiency, SUMS has taken a different path, from generous community initiatives to growth driven by word of mouth and experience. In this candid conversation, Ed shares where that mission came from, how these choices stack up commercially, and what 'success' looks like when you're trying to build more than just another product brand. 

In this timely conversation, IAB UK's Head of Policy and Public Affairs sits down with The Rt Hon Lord Hanson of Flint, Minister of State at the Home Office and the Government's dedicated Minister for Fraud, to unpack the UK's latest plans to tackle fraud, and what that means for the advertising industry. This discussion will explore the Government's priorities, the role of cross-department collaboration through the Online Advertising Taskforce, and why partnership with industry is critical to raising standard and disrupting criminal activity. Expect candid insight into what success looks like over the next 12 months, and a clear call to action for businesses in the room.

As part of our returning 'Leading With' series, this short, impactful talk explores leadership through the lens of lived experience. In this session, hear from a senior leader living with endometriosis, and gain insight into how managing a chronic and often invisible health condition can shape empathy, boundaries and sustainable leadership. Discover how openness around women's health, flexibility and self-advocacy can help build more supportive, high-performing cultures.

Ahead of publication, Kathleen Saxton shares exclusive insight from Sly & Mighty, drawing on years of research as a global C-Suite head-hunter and psychotherapist into the rise of Toxic leadership, often hidden in plain sight and how we now must address it. This session reframes what 'strong leadership' can look like, and challenges some of the assumptions that allow harmful dynamics to thrive at the top.

In this powerful and entertaining session, double Olympic Skeleton Champion Lizzy Yarnold shares the reality behind the medals. From discovering an unconventional sport to navigating injury setbacks and nearly missing Olympic selection as reigning champion, Lizzy reveals the resilience, mindset and love of learning that underpinned her success. An honest and inspiring look at what it truly takes to perform under pressure - and to keep going when everything is on the line.