Shelly Lazarus

Categories: Marketing | CEOs | Women's Spotlight

Travels from New York, New York, USA

Shelly Lazarus is the most powerful woman in advertising according to Fortune magazine. She is Chairman Emeritus of Ogilvy&Mather.

Shelly Lazarus has been working, as she would put it, “in the beloved business” for more than four decades, almost all of that time at Ogilvy. She rose through the ranks of Ogilvy & Mather assuming positions of increasing responsibility in the management of the company, including president of O&M Direct North America, Ogilvy&Mather New York and Ogilvy&Mather North America. She was named worldwide CEO of Ogilvy&Mather in 1996 and Chairman in 1997. She became Chairman Emeritus in July 2012.

Shelly Lazarus started at Ogilvy at a time when the agency’s legendary founder David Ogilvy still walked the halls, and personally preached that the purpose of advertising was to build great brands. Under her leadership, that essential mission remained the centerpiece of the company’s philosophy, extending across regions and marketing disciplines and attracting some of the world’s largest and most respected brands including American Express, BP, Coca-Cola, IBM and Unilever among many others.

Shelly Lazarus has been a frequent industry honoree. Advertising Women of New York selected Lazarus as its Woman of the Year in 1994. She was honored by Women in Communications with their Matrix Award in 1995, was named Business Woman of the Year by the New York City Partnership in 1996, and Woman of the Year in 2002 by the Direct Marketing Association (DMA). She was the first woman to receive Columbia Business School’s Distinguished Leader in Business Award as well as the Advertising Educational Foundation’s (AEF) Lifetime Achievement Award. She was inducted into the American Advertising Federation Hall of Fame in 2013 and is also a Hall of Fame member of the DMA, American Marketing Association and Crain's New York Business.

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